After someone has died you might hear people use the term wake and you might be wondering what it means. You might assume this term is interchangeable with "reception" or "viewing", and sometimes people use it like that. However, the a wake is a tradition with a very specific meaning…
Now that 2019 is coming to an end, many of you will be making New Year's Resolutions. While there are plenty of common ones out there - eating healthier, getting fitter or starting a new hobby, there are some practical resolutions you may not have thought of. As we get…
Death doesn't adhere to a convenient schedule, so there's really nothing you can do to prevent a death over the holidays. The holiday season is fun, but it is already a little bit stressful. Adding a death, whether expected or not, can only add to your grief. Many families grapple…
Up until recently, pet burials had to happen in specific places separate from human burial sites. However, a cemetery in Laval, Quebec, is recognizing your furry friends as a member of the family, allowing them to be buried alongside their human owners. The Laval Cemetery now has a "Masters and…
When it comes to funeral attire, there are many opinions out there. There are traditionalists who believe that you need to wear black or navy suits or simple, conservative dresses. There are also people who believe that colour is okay - framing it as a celebration of life rather than…
Burial has been a practice for centuries. It's the final step in a funeral - putting our loved ones in their final resting place. While burials have kept some rituals from the past, there are some oddities. Today is Halloween - a day where we see images of spooky cemeteries,…
Thank you cards are a way to show gratitude towards friends and family who are there for you or show generosity in some way. After a death, many of your loved ones will do what they can to be there for you. This could be bringing over meals so you…
Have you ever heard of an end-of-life doula? While most people recognize the term doula as related to birth and babies, there are now doulas specializing in death and dying. For those who have received the unfortunate news that they have a terminal illness or that their health is declining,…
When it comes to scattering ashes, many people have ideas of where they would like their final resting place to be.You would have likely heard that you cannot just scatter ashes wherever you want, but is that true? Let's look at the practice of scattering ashes in Ontario and what's…
It's everyone's worst nightmare - a loved one dying abroad. You worry about all sorts of things going wrong, especially if it's your senior parents. When you pass away in Canada, it's fairly straight forward. You follow the process,by calling a funeral home, the police or an ambulance. Loved ones…
