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.

Scattering Ashes vs Keeping an Urn at Home: Emotional, Practical, and Legal Things to Consider

Scattering Ashes vs Keeping an Urn at Home: Emotional, Practical, and Legal Things to Consider

When someone you love is cremated, you don’t just receive a container of ashes. You receive a new kind of responsibility: deciding what to do with ashes in a way...

Handling Photos, Videos, and Voicemails After a Death: Saving, Editing, and Setting Boundaries

Handling Photos, Videos, and Voicemails After a Death: Saving, Editing, and Setting Boundaries

When someone dies, it’s often the phone in your hand—not a photo album on a shelf—that first reminds you of them. A smiling selfie pops up under “Memories,” a voicemail...

When You Inherit a Pet: Legal Responsibilities, Emotional Adjustments, and Planning Ahead

When You Inherit a Pet: Legal Responsibilities, Emotional Adjustments, and Planning Ahead

When someone you love dies, you expect to be making decisions about services, funeral planning, and maybe which cremation urns for ashes or cremation jewelry feel right. You may not...

Home Funerals and Family-Led Care: Legal Basics, Preparation, and When It Makes Sense

Home Funerals and Family-Led Care: Legal Basics, Preparation, and When It Makes Sense

When someone dies, many families move almost automatically into a familiar script: call a funeral home, schedule a viewing, let professionals take the lead. Increasingly, though, some families pause and...

Do People Have Memorials for Dogs?

Do People Have Memorials for Dogs?

If you are quietly wondering whether people really have memorials for dogs, or if that is somehow “too much,” the honest answer is simple: yes, they absolutely do. Around the...

Burial Plot Benefits: Why a Cemetery Place Still Matters in a Cremation-First World

Burial Plot Benefits: Why a Cemetery Place Still Matters in a Cremation-First World

When families start talking about final arrangements today, the conversation usually circles around a familiar either-or question: burial or cremation. It can sound like once you choose one path, every...

The Final Walk: Stories of Community Support for Dying Dogs

The Final Walk: Stories of Community Support for Dying Dogs

There is a moment in every dog lover’s life when time slows in a way you never forget. The walks grow shorter. The breathing grows softer. The body that once...

Why You Still Cry Over a Pet You Lost Years Ago (and How to Honor That Love)

Why You Still Cry Over a Pet You Lost Years Ago (and How to Honor That Love)

Some grief does not vanish; it settles softly in the places love once lived.It lingers in the doorway where they used to greet you,in the bowl you never threw away,in...

How to Talk About Pet Loss With People Who Don't Get It

How to Talk About Pet Loss With People Who Don't Get It

When a pet dies, the silence in your home can feel deafening. The missing footsteps on the floor, the empty spot on the couch, the unused food bowl in the...

From Collars to Paw Prints: Meaningful Memorial Ideas for a Pet Who Has Died

From Collars to Paw Prints: Meaningful Memorial Ideas for a Pet Who Has Died

When a pet dies, everyday objects suddenly feel louder. The collar that used to jingle is now perfectly still. The leash by the front door has no one tugging at...

How to Support a Friend Who Lost a Pet: What to Say (and What Not to Say)

How to Support a Friend Who Lost a Pet: What to Say (and What Not to Say)

When a friend loses a pet, it can be surprisingly hard to know what to say. You may feel their grief deeply and still find yourself staring at a blank...

Nighttime Is the Hardest: Coping With Pet Loss When the House Feels Too Quiet

Nighttime Is the Hardest: Coping With Pet Loss When the House Feels Too Quiet

Why Evenings Hurt So Much After a Pet Dies After a pet dies, many people say the same thing: “I can get through the day, but at night, everything falls...

Grief and Romantic Relationships: Supporting Each Other, Handling Conflict, and When to Seek Help

Grief and Romantic Relationships: Supporting Each Other, Handling Conflict, and When to Seek Help

Grief is a profound experience that reaches far beyond the individual. Grief and romantic relationships can be deeply affected when one or both partners experience loss. Whether the death is...

Online Grief Groups vs In-Person Support: Which Works Better After a Loss?

Online Grief Groups vs In-Person Support: Which Works Better After a Loss?

In the weeks after a death, many people describe their world as split in two. On one side are the practical tasks: calling relatives, making funeral planning decisions, choosing between burial...

The First Night Without Your Pet: What People Actually Experience

The First Night Without Your Pet: What People Actually Experience

For those whose pets slept nearby, on the bed, at its foot, on their own pillow, or in a crate, the bed itself may feel alien. Reaching out instinctively, you...

Remembering With Food: Memorial Meals, Favorite Recipes, and Family Traditions After a Death

Remembering With Food: Memorial Meals, Favorite Recipes, and Family Traditions After a Death

Food carries memories. The aroma of a favorite dish, the warmth of a shared meal, and the comfort of familiar flavors can help keep a loved one’s presence alive even...