I was listening to the oldies station the other day and the song, American Pie by Don McLean came on. I was alone in my car, so I belted out the lyrics drove my Chevy to the levy, but the levy was dry with abandon. It made me think of the first time I heard the song in 1971. My boyfriend (later my husband and eventually my ex husband) and I were driving my car to the Salt River. Somehow singing Drove my Dodge to the river, but the river's not dry just didn't have the same pizzaz. But I digress. Luke chapter 16 contains the information of two individuals who died. The one was a beggar, but godly individual by the name of Lazarus, who was, according to this world a poor, miserable mistake. He had no money, no fame and to the best of our knowledge, his job was one of those homeless persons we see on the street. No one wept at his death, and I could not even guess who paid for this funeral. One more for us taxpayers, I presume. On the other hand, we have Dives, as the old teachers called him. By all accounts, he was the kind of person we all admire. He was a man of wealth, power, and prestige. The kind of person we venerate as being a success. His funeral was the fancy one where everyone mourned. When my husband died, I had to make a decision about continuing to live in our home or selling it. For 3 1/2 years, I reflected, talked with my kids, meditated, prayed and waited for the clear answer. Flying from Maryland to California for a conference brought my answer. funeral programs You will also need to respect the deceased families' beliefs and wishes. This will include their religious beliefs. Most religions allow flowers to be delivered to the funeral home or even the burial site. Others though, Orthodox Jews for example, consider this rude. So in this case you would send them directly to the home. You should also avoid flower arrangements that are centered on a religious belief for the same reasons. This is especially true if you are unaware of their religious beliefs and preferences. funeral program If you contact a funeral home that is trying to sell flowers you should politely say no thanks. Many of the mom and pop funeral homes have been purchased by a just a couple very large companies . These companies maintain the local name but they operate very differently. The funeral directors working for the funeral homes get commissions on flowers that are sold, the funeral home also keeps some of your money as commission on your flower order instead of it going into the sympathy flowers. Worse yet the funeral home employees don't know anything about flowers, what is in season or in stock so you are paying a premium for lousy service. Our nation has created a monetary system that put the financial decisions of our nation in the hands of a few for our nation's economic security. All it cost was to take a little individual liberty from each of us. As a nation, we said it was worth it. funeral program Besides, why would you want to live forever? Imagine if you were only a 100 year old. What would you do? Your friends are gone. Your husband/wife is dead. Your entire generation is dead. Your body is weak and you feel alone. All of that is a nature's way to say 'It's time to go' because death is a perfectly normal process in a cycle of life. It's just very inconvenient that we (humans) are smart enough to be aware of it. Although the fear of death is perfectly normal, try not to think about death, but enjoy every second of your life. Because you have only got one.
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