Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning.
Speaker 1: This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
Speaker 1: tip is to let people know how you'd like to
Speaker 1: be celebrated. This is smart in general, but in particular
Speaker 1: as we contemplate that we won't always be around to
Speaker 1: share our wishes, So let people know what you would
Speaker 1: appreciate as they remember you when you still can, let
Speaker 1: them know. This episode was inspired by the recent rather
Speaker 1: sudden passing of a fellow choir member. She loved music
Speaker 1: and had specific music she loved, but as no one
Speaker 1: thought she was going anywhere anytime soon, no one knew
Speaker 1: what music she wanted at her funeral. The topic hadn't
Speaker 1: come up. My choir director chose beautiful music based on
Speaker 1: what he knew of her, but he reminded the rest
Speaker 1: of us that we really should have this conversation while
Speaker 1: we can, so maybe you should have it too. If
Speaker 1: you have always known that you would want a certain
Speaker 1: song played, or a certain passage read, or a certain
Speaker 1: person speaking at your funeral, that is not the sort
Speaker 1: of thought to keep in your own brain. By the
Speaker 1: time anyone is planning your funeral, you won't be able
Speaker 1: to share that thought, or maybe you have always thought
Speaker 1: it would be great to have your ashes scattered off
Speaker 1: a boat. If no one else knows that, it is
Speaker 1: quite unlikely that people will decide to do that without
Speaker 1: your specific instructions. Maybe you even have a favorite restaurant
Speaker 1: that you'd like people to gather at after your wake,
Speaker 1: unless it is close to the church or funeral home,
Speaker 1: and unless that's where people usually go, that is not
Speaker 1: going to be an automatic assumption. So put it in
Speaker 1: writing or tell your closest friends and family now. To
Speaker 1: some degree, by the time people are planning your funeral,
Speaker 1: none of this will truly matter to you, after all,
Speaker 1: you won't be there for it, but your friends and
Speaker 1: family will likely feel better and more certain of their
Speaker 1: choices if they know that they are doing what you
Speaker 1: wanted them to do. They will be able to explain
Speaker 1: things to everyone there, and they'll be able to tell
Speaker 1: stories based on those choices, and those will help people
Speaker 1: remember you. So if there are specific ways that you
Speaker 1: would like to be celebrated, share these you can tell
Speaker 1: friends and family, and if you are a member of
Speaker 1: a house of worship, it might be good to get
Speaker 1: these wishes on file. There as they will no doubt
Speaker 1: be involved in all of this. I will put out
Speaker 1: here into the world that I want to chore singing
Speaker 1: at my funeral, ideally one that is good enough to
Speaker 1: satisfactorily perform Herbert Howells take him Earth for cherishing. We
Speaker 1: can just understand that they mean her in this case
Speaker 1: instead of him. I also want an alto soloist with
Speaker 1: a pure and lovely voice, singing the on Us Day
Speaker 1: from Bo's B Minor Mass. If there is time, or
Speaker 1: if the Howel's piece proves too difficult, we could throw
Speaker 1: John Tavner's song for a theme in there. So how
Speaker 1: about you, what would you like people to hear or experience?
Speaker 1: If you have thoughts, don't let those thoughts go with you.
Speaker 1: I hope you'll take this episode as a nudge to
Speaker 1: have this conversation. And I know there are even more
Speaker 1: important ones to have about end of life directives and
Speaker 1: what you're including in your will and so forth. But
Speaker 1: maybe starting with how you would like to be celebrated
Speaker 1: will begin these conversations. And while these conversations are difficult,
Speaker 1: they are good to have. Because the end is inevitable,
Speaker 1: we may as well approach it mindfully. In the meantime,
Speaker 1: this is Laura. Thanks for listening and here's to making
Speaker 1: the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to
Speaker 1: hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,
Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook
Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod. That's b E the
Speaker 1: number four then Breakfast pod. You can also shoot me
Speaker 1: an email at Before Breakfast Podcasts at iHeartMedia dot com
Speaker 1: That Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.
Speaker 1: Thanks so much. Should I look forward to staying in touch.
Speaker 1: Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts
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