Variety is the spice of life and it seems it is becoming the same with death, at least when it comes to locations for conducting the funeral service.

In Where is an appropriate place to hold a funeral? Councils decide as mourners move away from tradition (ABC Central Victoria, 22.2.18) Stephanie Corsetti reports that there are now so many requests for holding funerals in public places like parks and gardens, that local Councils are considering if there needs to be some rules and regulations around this practice.

Some people feel unsettled when they come across a funeral service being held out in the open.  But that’s because the whole business of dying and death has been closeted away for so long that people are not comfortable about it being a part of everyday life, which it is, but for them it isn’t.

Hayley West is an advocate for home funerals and greater family involvement. She notes that two funeral undertakers in the Victorian town of Castlemaine “are really open to talking to families about alternative ways to bury their deceased. ”  Adding that: “There is a really strong movement for home funerals and controlling the funeral yourself. It’s about exchanging the knowledge that I have about what you can do.”

For the full story, visit: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-22/trend-to-personalised-funerals-headaches-local-councils/9471372

Other trends at international funeral services, such as funeral strippers hired to entertain mourners, have also made headlines, especially in China where the practice has been going on for years.