You will outlive many people in your life, for whom you will grieve deeply. Loved ones whom you will miss terribly. The injustice, loneliness and pain will seem unbearable. Often you may feel that you can't go on without them. You may wonder if there will ever be an end to your sorrow. You may feel that there is no hope. My dear friend, there is hope. My purpose for writing this book is to help you navigate the confusing process of outliving those whom you love. As you read through this book, I hope you will understand that there is no easy way through the experience of sharing someone's death. There are, however, things you can do to prepare for your loved one's death that will relieve you of many of the burdensome tasks associated with the ending of someone's life. These preparations will give you some amount of control in a situation which seems out of control. Accepting, adapting, anticipating and meeting these challenges will free you and prepare you to tackle the necessary road to recovery with greater ease and comfort. Whether you are planning your own funeral or the future funeral of a loved one, your course of action should be the same. Explore, evaluate and pre-plan your funeral needs. Doing so will save you time, money, stress and heartache. This process is actually an act of love for yourself, for those whom you love and for those who love you. It is a gift worth giving and a gift that will be appreciated when death occurs. This book is written to help you through the planning and preparation of pre-planning a funeral. Many people do not pre-plan a funeral because they are intimidated or afraid of the process. My goal is to help you overcome these fears by offering information and facts that will enable you to realize that funeral planning is inevitable and one way or another you are going to do it. Let's do it the easier way, in advance of need, when decisions can be made without overwhelming stress, armed with solid knowledge so that you will not be vulnerable to those who might take advantage of you. A funeral director's job is to protect her client by sharing information that is pertinent at the end of a loved one's life. She has prepared and expanded her knowledge to guide you toward the decisions and qualified persons that can protect you legally, emotionally and financially. The passing of a treasured loved one creates a vulnerability. The survivor's ability to think clearly, understand the consequences of certain decisions and to function at their usual level of competency is greatly impaired. These reactions are common. Your body is coping with the extreme circumstances of death. It has compromised your ability to fully comprehend what is happening so that the extreme pain of this loss will not crush you. It is imperative that you have a trustworthy funeral director to guide you through this confusion so that once you are experiencing the consequences of your decisions, they are consequences that you can live with rather than ones you suffer from or regret. In order to bring this book to you, I have invested over a decade of preparation. During this time my family has invested unwavering support in me, seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day. It has been a family mission. It has been our family goal. Few people neither see the need for, nor want this much knowledge and experience of the funeral business, but most would like to benefit from it. Read my book and you will save money and be better prepared for the sorrow that follows the death of a loved one. I show you how to understand the pricing structure of the funeral industry so that you can make better, more informed decisions. My super saver tips will save you thousands of dollars. My advice on emotional preparedness will help you before, during and after the funeral. Take care of the things I suggest and you will have a better funeral experience.
About the Author: Tracy Renee Lee is a licensed funeral director, freelance writer, professional speaker, professional artist and author. She writes weekly bereavement articles for nearly 1000 newspapers and magazines nationwide. She has authored four books; Someone Has Died, an illustrated children's book on the death experience; Mourning Coffee for the Mourning Soul, a compilation of her yearly-published articles; Pushin' Up Daisies, a guide to lowering funeral expenses; and Mourning Glory, 100 brief facts to get you through the grief experience. Tracy was runner up for American Funeral Director of the Year 2014 and has received the Better Business Bureau's Integrity Award for her outstanding business practices. She is also the official artist for the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame. Tracy's goal is to have a radio talk show where mourners may call in and have their questions answered. It is her life's work to comfort the bereaved and help them live on.