Guides
Writing, planning, and remembering.
Honest, practical help for the hardest moments. No grand language, no pressure to make it perfect. Just what matters, and what you can do.
How to Write a Eulogy (With Examples)
A eulogy is not a biography. It is a window. Here is how to write one that brings the person back into the room, built out of the details that were really them.
Read the guideHow to Make a Memorial Website for a Loved One
A memorial website gives the people who loved someone one lasting place to gather. Here is how to make one, step by step, and what to look for in a platform.
Read the guideHow to Give a Eulogy Without Falling Apart
Writing the eulogy is one thing. Standing up and saying it is another. Here is how to get through delivering it, and why it is okay if your voice shakes.
Read the guideHow to Collect Memories and Stories After Someone Dies
The stories you never heard are out there, in other people's memories. Here is how to gather them after a death, before they fade, and keep them in one place.
Read the guideHow to Plan a Celebration of Life
The question is not what a celebration of life is supposed to look like. It is what would make people feel close to them again. Here is how to plan one, simply.
Read the guideYour Digital Legacy: Preserving Photos and Memories After a Death
So much of a life now lives on phones and in accounts that can vanish. Here is how to think about a digital legacy and preserve the memories that matter.
Read the guideIn Lieu of Flowers: What to Say (With Examples)
More families are asking for donations instead of flowers. Here is what the phrase means, how to word it kindly, and examples you can adapt.
Read the guideHow to Create an Online Memorial
An online memorial is not a post that scrolls away. It is a lasting place people can return to. Here is how to make one, what to put in it, and how to think about privacy.
Read the guideShort Condolence Messages You Can Send (Text, Email, Card)
Sometimes you just need the words now, for a text or a card. Here are short condolence messages you can adapt, by relationship, plus what to avoid.
Read the guideWhat to Write in a Sympathy Card
Most people freeze because they are afraid of saying the wrong thing. The truth is that saying something imperfect almost always beats saying nothing. Here is how.
Read the guideGrief and the First Year: What to Expect
Grief is not a tidy set of stages you move through and finish. Here is an honest look at the first year, what to expect, what helps, and when to ask for more help.
Read the guideHow to Write an Obituary (Template and Examples)
An obituary has a job to do, announce, inform, and honor, but it does not have to read like a form. Here is a simple template, an example, and how to make it feel like them.
Read the guideWhat to Do When Someone Dies: A First-Steps Checklist
When someone dies, the hardest part is often not knowing what needs doing first. Here is a calm, ordered list, including the things that can wait.
Read the guideFuneral Poems and Readings for a Memorial
The right reading can say the thing you cannot. Here is a small collection of funeral poems and readings, with how to choose one and how to read it aloud.
Read the guideWhat to Say to Someone Who Is Grieving
Most people are so afraid of saying the wrong thing that they say nothing. Here is what actually helps, in person and over time, when someone you love is grieving.
Read the guideHow to Plan a Funeral: A Calm, Practical Checklist
Planning a funeral while grieving is a lot to carry. Here is a calm checklist of the real decisions, a straight look at cost, and how not to overspend.
Read the guideWays to Honor and Remember a Loved One
Remembering someone is not a single event. It is something you do for years. Here are meaningful, mostly simple ways to honor and keep a loved one close.
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