Three years ago in my uncle's garage in Riverside he told me funerals were a waste of money and I got mad but now I think he might have had a point about how we handle death in America

After watching my neighbor drop $14,000 on a casket and plot for his mom who never even wanted a big service it made me wonder if we're all just going through the motions because nobody wants to be the one to say the quiet part out loud about funeral costs and traditions.

3 comments

3 Comments

barbara27822d ago

$14,000 is insane for a box you put in the ground. That's a used car. Most people I know end up handing over credit cards because they feel pressured by aunts or uncles who say "Mom would have wanted nice." My dad always said just burn him and toss the ashes anywhere. Might sound cold but he wasn't wrong.

kelly_hill22d ago

I read somewhere that the average funeral costs around $9,000 now which is basically a vacation or a down payment on a car. It's crazy how we keep doing this big expensive send off even when the person specifically said they didn't want one. My aunt always says the funeral is for the living but sometimes I wonder if we're just wasting money we don't have to make ourselves feel better instead of what the person actually wanted.

the_beth20d ago

So what do you do when someone you love goes against the dead person's wishes and insists on the big funeral? My uncle was the same way, said just cremate him and throw a party, but his wife spent a fortune on a casket and plot anyway. Did anyone here actually deal with a family member who went ahead and did the opposite of what was asked?