No one looks forward to attending a funeral service of a person they know. However, showing up to a funeral or memorial service is one of the ways to show your condolences and thoughtfulness to the bereaved family and to the deceased. Moreover, attending a funeral service is a great act of showing your thoughtfulness, and letting friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors know that you care about the person who passed away. The problem is, not all the times you would be able to make it to a funeral service. We have our own work or commitments that we need to do. Therefore, when is it okay to not go or attend a funeral service? We observed and asked people in the cremation service in Baltimore, MD about what is the right reason not attend to a funeral wake.
Etiquette experts say that it depends on your closeness to whether you want or need to decide to attend a funeral. If it is a member of your family, it is a must to attend his/her funeral. Same as if it is your close friend, attending is necessary to show your love and thoughtfulness to that person. But if it is someone from your neighborhood or some friend of a friend, there is another situation with that. But the general rule is, if you have time, or if you are available to attend a funeral service, you should be there – most importantly if you have deep respect for that person.
Furthermore, experts say that people or family members will always remember how you handle weddings and funerals. They will always remember the people who showed up and those who did not. But if time does not permit you to go to a funeral service, that can be considered. For instance, if your loved one who passed away is in a different country, and you cannot book a flight to go, it
is okay to just send your condolences by giving gifts or sending messages to the bereaved family. Another reason to not attend a memorial service is when you can’t take time off work. You can show up to that funeral service when time permits you to do so. But on the other hand, many people argue that you should never skip any funeral that you are invited to, especially when your schedule permits you because it will be very uncomfortable for the family.
And according to Daniel Senning, “You are never obligated to do anything, and you can make any choice you want in your life.” But in a course of a person’s life, there are only a few milestones that you can show your love and support to a person, like weddings, graduations, and funerals. And although we are not looking forward to attending any funeral service, like the cremation service in Baltimore, MD, it is important to remember the deceased in their memorial service. Therefore, you can now think if you need to consider attending a funeral service of a person you know.
