Traditional Funerals Vs. The Short And Sweet: How Do You Want To Go?
If you have ever been to a traditional funeral for either military personnel or for traditional religions, you know that they can stretch on for quite some time. While it may or may not be helpful to the grieving family to have everyone come out for support, it keeps everyone from grieving in their own ways. When it comes to your own funeral, you have the option of going out traditionally, or having a short and sweet funeral. To help you decide which one you feel is right, here are some of the events attached to these types of funerals.
The Traditional Funeral
Traditional funerals often have two wakes; one at the funeral home for family and close friends, and another at the church, temple, or synagogue. The funeral does not start until much later after the second wake. Then there is the funeral procession with music, with your chosen pallbearers leading the way. The entire funeral procession travels down the street, with the hearse and black cars first, and everyone else second to last.
Bag pipes, trumpets, and other instruments play at the grave site or mausoleum. If you are military, there is the 21-gun salute, and a second service given by the military chaplain. Then there is another graveside service, followed by anyone who has something to say and has not said it already. Just when it seems like this will stretch on for an eternity, the whole thing is over and your casket is lowered into the grave or lifted and loaded into your crypt. The whole of the funeral stretches over two days, which feels like a lifetime to some people when they want to grieve in peace.
Short and Sweet
The short and sweet funeral consists of an eulogy and service at the funeral home, followed by the procession to the grave or mausoleum, some brief statements from those closest to you, and then the burial or entombment. Usually, a short and sweet ceremony is requested for two reasons. Either you know you will not have enough money for burial expenses and you are trying to pare down the cost of your funeral, or you find traditional funerals painfully long and do not want everyone else to have to sit through the length of a traditional funeral for you. Whatever your reasons, funeral homes are willing to accommodate your final wishes when you work out a plan and a payment plan in advance.
Visit a site like http://www.hitzemanfuneral.com for more help.