I had a conversation with our Executive Director one day.  The conversation started out with "Do you find that when you tell people about what you do for a living that there is an uneasy pause in the conversation and a furrowed looked on their face?"

I too was unaware of what pre-planning was when I first started here at GFD. So I humble myself to those I talk to outside of the funeral realm. 

But what is even more interesting is how comfortable people are when the subject of funeral planning arises. We start to have a very casual (sometime off-beat humorous) talk about a particular funeral that they planned for a loved one or even what they would like for their own funeral.  The wall seems to disappear and the taboo of talking about final planning fades away.

I was at a car dealership dropping my car off for its maintenance. The dealership van driver showed up to take me to work. He asked me what GFD is and what I do there? Skipping right over the surprised part of the conversation, I was amazed at how open the driver became about planning his mother's funeral. Then he began talking about his own wishes.

I probably will never see this person again, but in our 10 minute excursion I probably know more about his final wishes than my own parents.  

Stay tuned! We will explore many issues surrounding final planning.