Eulogies Help Celebrate A Life Well Lived

Eulogies provide a wonderful opportunity to reflect on a life well lived, but I sometimes wonder if people really understand what eulogies are and why they are so important in farewell ceremonies.

The word 'eulogy' means to pay tribute to or praise someone, particularly after they have died. A person who delivers a eulogy in a farewell ceremony is sometimes described as a 'eulogist.'

The best eulogies are those filled with anecdotes about the person's life, achievements and adventures.

• Like the time Aunt Sadie surprised everyone when she entered and won an all-night dance competition.
  
• Or the time Great Uncle Benny ventured down into a disused well to rescue a puppy that had fallen into it.
  
• Or Cousin Rick taking a spin on the Mount Panorama racing circuit in a Hot Wheels high performance vehicle for his 30th birthday.
  
• Or Oupa Marnus and his classic car collection that he loved to display at local Show and Shine events.
  
• Or friend Aroha walking the length of Australia from north to south to raise funds for cancer research before the disease ultimately claimed her life.  

Sadly, many eulogies at farewell ceremonies are often a simple chronological timeline reeling off where the person was and what they did during "the dash" between the date of their birth and the date of their death. While it's fine to know where someone was born, grew up, lived their life and passed away, their life was so much more than just that.

​A finely crafted eulogy will tell a story that focuses on a few elements of the deceased's life, but not everything.

The best people to develop eulogies are those who knew the deceased - family or close friends. Celebrants (officiants) can also do this but never really as well as a family member or friend.

Within the ceremony, eulogies also provide a direct link and subtle invitation to other people to step up to provide their own tributes to or personal reflections of the deceased. 

Hearing the reflections of others sharing their memories of the deceased may well bring a smile to the faces of those grieving. 
​

"Not, how did he die, but how did he live?
Not, what did he gain, but what did he give?"
~ Author Unknown ~