A question: Would you like your funeral in a church or at a crematorium? If you have a strong faith the answer will be obvious. But the number of weekly worshippers in the UK now stands at 12% and falling. So that leaves an awful lot of people - 88% - who are maybe less sure.
If I told you that the funeral service didn't have to be in either - that it could be conducted at home in the garden, at the golf club, in a farmers field in a marquee, would that change your mind? There is no legal constraint in the UK, other than you must have the permission of the person who owns the space.
A busy day today, although I think a day more happy than sad. I shall be on funeral celebrant duties today at my local crematorium in Bath. We have a lovely ceremony planned, with Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett music - their music is so powerful and I think the Tony Bennett track ("I left my heart in San Francisco") will be perfect. After that I shall be off to visit a local family, who are planning a ceremony for their mum. An emotional day in prospect but a good one...
Today, I shall mostly be looking for a slice of coffee and walnut cake in one of the local cafes - emotional days require lots of comfort food!
