How every day's a school day, especially at my first funeral exhibition.



1.      Exactly how you scatter ashes in space – with proper science and maths and everything. Including how it’s surprisingly less costly than I’d imagined. So bizarrely fascinating that it deserves a future vlog of its own

– always start a conversation, especially with those who baffle you.

2.      That if you’re upfront about the fact that you very much do not have the 40 grand required to purchase a private ambulance, however shiny they are, the person on the stand will still let you have a free ice cream, they'll even let you choose your own flavour

– honesty always pays.

3.      That the next field trip Lyndsey Conquest Independent Celebrant and I need to undertake must be a weekend in Dublin. Just so that we can go and visit a working Resomation unit, and not at all because we could also chill in a nice hotel and drink Guinness

- embracing innovation might just save the world.

4.      That the extremely fancy 5 grand caskets (the ones with the lids which half-lift-up for open casket funerals, like the ones you’ve seen on every American TV show, but probably never in real life) have richly padded upholstered interiors covered with what (on close inspection) is disappointingly cheap man-made fabric

– not all that glitters is gold (rather, not all that appears plush is velvet).

5.      That when your very intelligent, capable friend and colleague is concerned that a beautiful woollen coffin lining might feel uncomfortably itchy to the skin of its inhabitant - you don’t need to point out the obvious, you just need to give her a minute to click onto what she’s just said

- some people’s default setting is compassion - so much so that it can temporarily outshine their logic, and that is something I am fully onboard with.

6.      That weaving a willow coffin is utterly captivating to watch. It’s extremely skilful. Oh, and also, it’s a skill I do not possess

– hone the skills which are born from your own talents, just be an expert in your own field.

7.      That being able to talk freely to strangers who, when you raise the subject of death and funerals, don’t bat even one single eyelid makes you feel blissfully un-weird

– life makes more sense when you find your tribe.

8.      That you cannot go near the CEO of the organisation I trained with without her pointing a video camera at you and asking for a quote for some promotional project

– massive achievements come from dogged persistence and dedication #BeMoreAnne.

9.      That, even in this most uniquely death-centric of environments, not one single person offers you a ‘go’ in one of their coffins

– even in the world of the odd there is always one (or 2 – Lyndsey Celebrant I’m looking at you) who must be the oddest of the odd.

10.  That, just as in the wedding industry, there truly are limitless options to personalise a funeral ceremony. There are a reassuringly large number of people out there also gently subverting this industry, nudging things forwards and working to spark a tiny revolution in the funeral world

– after living your own unique life, why would you opt for a generic funeral?

If you’d like to find out more about funeral ceremonies and the options which are available to all, please feel free to get in touch.