Planning out a memorial service for your loved one is a difficult process, especially when you have to take it on while also grieving. If you were not able to plan anything in advance, while your loved one was still around, you have to figure out how to choose a reading for the memorial service, among other things. There are simple tips that might help you as you try to settle on a reading to use.
1. Look for Something that is Short and Sweet
While a memorial service can be used to help bring closure to those who have lost a loved one, you don’t want to force those in attendance to sit through a long reading. It is important that any readings that you pick out for the memorial service be short and to the point. You want the reader and the audience to be able to get through the readings without too much of a struggle.
2. Choose a Reading that Fits the One Who Passed Away
When you are picking out a reading for a memorial service, think about authors and historical figures that the one who passed appreciated while they were alive. Consider reading a short segment from a novel that your loved one enjoyed, or read a quote or two from someone from history. Choose a reading that fits with the life and interests of the one who passed.
3. Look for Something that is Emotional and Fitting
It is important that the reading that you choose be fitting for a memorial service. You might read a quote about peace, strength, or grief. You might find a quote that deals directly with death or one that gives a hint at an afterlife. Choose a piece that will stir the emotions of those at the memorial service and that fits with what you are recognizing in that service.
4. Know What the Reader Will be Able to Get Through
It is important for you to find a reading that does not contain too many difficult to pronounce words or long sentences. You should find something that the reader will be able to get through without messing up too much or giving up out of frustration.
5. Choose a Reading that Offers Hope
When you are planning a memorial service, you have the chance to influence the lives of those who are attending that service. The reading that you pick out for the service should offer hope to those attending the service. It should give those people something that they can believe in and something that they can look forward to as they grieve.
6. Consider that Children May Be in the Audience
There is a good chance that there will be some children in attendance at the memorial service. Because of that, the readings that you choose should be clean and they should be something that children will understand. The readings that you choose should not be too deep and they should not be anything that might scare young children.
It is important for you to think carefully about the type of readings that your loved one would want to have shared at their memorial service.
