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.

Pet Cremation vs. Burial: How to Choose What Feels Right for Your Family

Pet Cremation vs. Burial: How to Choose What Feels Right for Your Family

When a pet dies, the silence in the house is often the first thing you notice. The empty bed, the unused leash, the food bowl that doesn’t need to be...

Traumatic Pet Loss: Coping with Accidents and Unpreventable Tragedies

Traumatic Pet Loss: Coping with Accidents and Unpreventable Tragedies

Sudden loss throws your entire world off its axis. One moment your pet is part of your daily rhythm, the footsteps following you down the hallway, the weight on the...

Pet Euthanasia Guilt: What to Do When You Keep Asking 'Did I Do the Right Thing?

Pet Euthanasia Guilt: What to Do When You Keep Asking 'Did I Do the Right Thing?

There is a particular silence that follows euthanasia. It is not just the quiet house or the empty bed on the floor; it is the silence in your own mind...

Grieving the Loss of a Cat: Healing When Your Quiet Companion Is Gone

Grieving the Loss of a Cat: Healing When Your Quiet Companion Is Gone

When a dog dies, people tend to picture an empty leash and long walks that no longer happen. When a cat dies, the losses can feel quieter—but no less profound....

Do Pets Know They Are Dying? Gentle Thoughts for Worried Pet Parents

Do Pets Know They Are Dying? Gentle Thoughts for Worried Pet Parents

There is a particular kind of quiet that settles over a home when a beloved animal is nearing the end of life. Maybe your dog no longer rushes to the...

How to Cope With the Loss of a Dog: Gentle Steps for the Hardest Goodbye

How to Cope With the Loss of a Dog: Gentle Steps for the Hardest Goodbye

When a dog dies, the world can tilt in ways that other people don’t always see. The bed is still made, the emails still arrive, the traffic still moves—but the...

When a Loved One Dies by Suicide: Gentle Guidance for Language, Memorials, and Support

When a Loved One Dies by Suicide: Gentle Guidance for Language, Memorials, and Support

The moment you learn that someone you love has died by suicide, time can feel split in two. There is the world “before,” and then the surreal blur that follows:...

Balancing Children’s Activities and School with Grief: Attendance, Homework, and Gentle Flexibility

Balancing Children’s Activities and School with Grief: Attendance, Homework, and Gentle Flexibility

On the outside, the morning looks normal. Backpacks by the door, a half-finished cereal bowl on the table, a reminder email from the school about an upcoming project. But everything...

Pet Loss After a Sudden Death vs. Long Illness: Why Grief Can Feel Different

Pet Loss After a Sudden Death vs. Long Illness: Why Grief Can Feel Different

Losing a pet hurts no matter how it happens. Whether your companion died suddenly in an accident or slipped away after a long illness, the silence they leave behind can...

The Guilt of Being Happy Again: Why Joy Isn't a Betrayal

The Guilt of Being Happy Again: Why Joy Isn't a Betrayal

There is a strange, almost jarring moment that many grieving people recognize. You are washing dishes, scrolling your phone, or talking with a friend, and something makes you laugh out...

What Do the Stripes on the American Flag Mean? History, Symbolism, and Proper Use at Graves

What Do the Stripes on the American Flag Mean? History, Symbolism, and Proper Use at Graves

When you walk through a cemetery on a national holiday and see row after row of small American flags fluttering above headstones, the sight can catch in your throat. Those...

Funeral Costs Broken Down: What You’re Paying For and How to Compare Price Lists

Funeral Costs Broken Down: What You’re Paying For and How to Compare Price Lists

Funeral planning often comes with unexpected financial decisions. Sitting at a funeral home table, reviewing a stack of papers, you may suddenly find yourself facing line items you’ve never seen...

When a Bird Dies: Understanding the Unique Grief of Avian Companionship

When a Bird Dies: Understanding the Unique Grief of Avian Companionship

When most people think of pet loss, they imagine dogs or cats—walks, cuddles, playful nuzzles, and daily routines that are easy to notice and remember. What they often don’t picture...

Celebrating Their Birthday After They’re Gone

Celebrating Their Birthday After They’re Gone

When a beloved pet dies, the calendar does not get the news. Their birthday or “gotcha day” still shows up in your phone, on the family wall calendar, or in...

How to Write a Eulogy That Sounds Like Your Loved One

How to Write a Eulogy That Sounds Like Your Loved One

Standing before family and friends, clutching your notes or a piece of paper, the weight of love, memory, and grief presses down. Then comes the question that can feel both...

Social Security and Death: Survivor Benefits, One-Time Payments, and What to Report

Social Security and Death: Survivor Benefits, One-Time Payments, and What to Report

The days following the loss of a loved one can feel disorienting and emotionally heavy. Families often find themselves juggling numerous responsibilities at once, arranging a service, coordinating with a...