The Funeral.com Journal

Resources to help you create tributes as unique as the people (and pets) you love. Learn how engraving, photos, colors, and symbols add meaning; discover scattering rituals and at-home memorial ideas. We focus on the details that matter—because small choices can carry a lifetime of comfort.

Rastafarian Views on Death: Why Some Avoid the Word ‘Death’ and What They Believe Instead - Funeral.com, Inc.

Rastafarian Views on Death: Why Some Avoid the Word ‘Death’ and What They Believe Instead

The first time many people encounter Rastafari language around loss, it can feel like stepping into a room where the usual vocabulary no longer fits. You may hear a family...

Viaticum and Catholic Last Rites: What It Is, Who Can Receive It, and When to Ask - Funeral.com, Inc.

Viaticum and Catholic Last Rites: What It Is, Who Can Receive It, and When to Ask

In the middle of an end-of-life season, families often discover a strange kind of time distortion. Hours can feel like minutes, and minutes can feel like hours. Decisions you never...

Antam Sanskar in Sikhism: Funeral Customs, Cremation, and a Focus on Simplicity - Funeral.com, Inc.

Antam Sanskar in Sikhism: Funeral Customs, Cremation, and a Focus on Simplicity

In the first hours after a death, families often find themselves holding two realities at once: the spiritual weight of goodbye, and the practical questions that don’t pause for grief....

The 13 Days of Mourning in Hinduism: What the First Two Weeks Can Look Like for Families - Funeral.com, Inc.

The 13 Days of Mourning in Hinduism: What the First Two Weeks Can Look Like for Families

The first days after a death can feel like you are living in two worlds at once. In one world, you are grieving—staring at a familiar pair of shoes by...

Ghusl for the Deceased: Muslim Ritual Washing, Who Performs It, and Why It’s Sacred - Funeral.com, Inc.

Ghusl for the Deceased: Muslim Ritual Washing, Who Performs It, and Why It’s Sacred

In the first hours after a death, families often describe the same feeling: everything is suddenly urgent, and yet nothing feels simple. There are phone calls to make, relatives to...

Qingming Festival (Tomb Sweeping Day): History, Rituals, and Modern Ways Families Observe It - Funeral.com, Inc.

Qingming Festival (Tomb Sweeping Day): History, Rituals, and Modern Ways Families Observe It

In many families, grief doesn’t begin with a single day. It returns in seasons—when the light changes, when certain foods appear on the table, when a name is spoken and...

How Much Does Cremation Cost in Virginia in 2026? - Funeral.com, Inc.

How Much Does Cremation Cost in Virginia in 2026?

When you’re planning after a death—or trying to plan ahead so your family won’t have to guess later—cost questions can feel both practical and emotional. In Virginia, cremation is a...

How Much Does Cremation Cost in West Virginia in 2026? - Funeral.com, Inc.

How Much Does Cremation Cost in West Virginia in 2026?

The call that starts funeral planning is rarely the call you feel ready to make. Sometimes it comes after a long illness, when you have quietly been preparing in your...

Next-of-Kin Order Explained: A Simple Decision Hierarchy - Funeral.com, Inc.

Next-of-Kin Order Explained: A Simple Decision Hierarchy

When someone dies, most families are not thinking in legal terms. They are thinking in human terms: Who is going to call the siblings? Who is going to choose the...

What If There’s No Next of Kin? How Arrangements Are Typically Handled - Funeral.com, Inc.

What If There’s No Next of Kin? How Arrangements Are Typically Handled

It can be unsettling to even ask the question: what happens if someone dies and no family can be found, or no one is willing or able to step forward....

How to Plan a Funeral in 2026: Costs, Trends, and Preplanning Options for Seniors - Funeral.com, Inc.

How to Plan a Funeral in 2026: Costs, Trends, and Preplanning Options for Seniors

When someone dies, families often describe the same strange collision of realities: grief feels timeless, but decisions arrive on a deadline. If you are planning for a parent, spouse, or...

Small Estate Affidavit by State: How to Skip Probate, Limits, and Requirements - Funeral.com, Inc.

Small Estate Affidavit by State: How to Skip Probate, Limits, and Requirements

After a death, families often find themselves doing two kinds of work at the same time. There is the emotional work of missing someone, of making decisions that feel too...

Joint Tenancy With Right of Survivorship: How Real Estate Transfers After Death - Funeral.com, Inc.

Joint Tenancy With Right of Survivorship: How Real Estate Transfers After Death

When someone dies, families often discover that grief has a practical side. There are calls to make, documents to gather, accounts to freeze or transfer, and decisions that cannot wait....

Carbon Offsetting for Funerals: How to Offset Cremation and Travel Emissions Without Greenwashing - Funeral.com, Inc.

Carbon Offsetting for Funerals: How to Offset Cremation and Travel Emissions Without Greenwashing

In the middle of grief, “carbon” can feel like a strange word to carry. You may be planning a service, answering messages you don’t have the energy to answer, and...

Managing Dry Mouth (Xerostomia) in Hospice: Oral Care When Swallowing Is Difficult - Funeral.com, Inc.

Managing Dry Mouth (Xerostomia) in Hospice: Oral Care When Swallowing Is Difficult

In hospice, the hardest challenges are often the quiet ones. A loved one may wake with lips stuck together, a tongue that looks dry and coated, and a voice that...

Funeral Etiquette for Immediate Family: Roles, Procession Order, and What to Do at the Service - Funeral.com, Inc.

Funeral Etiquette for Immediate Family: Roles, Procession Order, and What to Do at the Service

When you are immediate family, funeral etiquette can feel less like “manners” and more like a new job you did not apply for. You may be grieving, coordinating details, and...