How to write a eulogy for a natural burial

There are many ways in which a natural burial differs from a traditional one, but all types involve celebrating the life of the person being buried or cremated.

One way of doing that is to give a eulogy in which important events and people in that person’s life are remembered and stories and anecdotes about them are shared.

Natural burials are commonly less formal than traditional ones, and that can allow a touch more freedom when compiling your eulogy to make it less formal than if you were delivering it in a church.

Here at Tithe Green Natural Burial, we’ve heard all kinds of eulogies and if there’s one thing we’ve learned it’s that there’s no right or wrong way of doing it.

Nevertheless, a little guidance can help, so here are the Tithe Green tips for writing a eulogy for a natural burial.

Tips for writing a eulogy for a natural burial

Think about how you can capture the real essence of the person

While you certainly want to relate the key elements of their life – and the important people in it – you mainly want to capture the personality of the person involved. Remember that others might have a different take, so it’s worth getting their take on them as well.

We’ve listed some of the things you might consider, but remember that not all the elements below will apply to every person.

• What was their background?
• What were the milestones in their life?
• What was their personality like?
• Did they have particular hobbies and interests?
• Anecdotes and stories from their life

Remember that while close friends and family will usually already be aware of much of the above, there will usually be people there who don’t, so don’t make assumptions about who knows what. Even if most do know a lot of it, it’s a great way of sparking memories for people to share afterwards.

Structuring your eulogy

You don’t have to write it out as a full speech, but it’s important to have some idea about how you’re going to structure your eulogy. For instance, is it going to be a chronological story of their life or are you going to focus on specific themes?

Writing it out as a speech will help you if you’re nervous about talking in front of a group of people, but speaking directly from the heart can sound more personal.

If you do go for the latter approach, it’s sensible to bullet point what you want to say so you don’t miss anything out and it follows a logical progression.

Consider the tone

Funerals can be sad, but they don’t have to be. One of the great things about natural burials is how much easier it can be to tailor them to the personalities of those being celebrated.

So, if a funny eulogy is appropriate – and you have the confidence to pull it off! – then feel free, because in our experience something that lightens the tone is usually well received.

Consider the length

You’ll never be hurried at one of our natural burials – nevertheless, you don’t want your eulogy to be too long.

It’s usually sensible to aim for about five minutes, but check how long you have for the whole event and make sure you leave time for everything that needs to happen.

Ask for help

Writing a eulogy is a very personal thing, but that doesn’t mean you have to do it entirely on your own. After all, you may think you knew the person well, but remember that they probably had other friends and family who’ll have memories they’ll want to share as well.

Ask around beforehand and try to include others’ anecdotes and stories. It’s also a sensible idea to do a ‘dry run’ with someone beforehand to check the length and get a second opinion on whether you’re hitting the right note.

Here at Tithe Green Natural Burial, we offer natural burials and ashes interments built around your wishes. The only thing we insist on is that you meet the environmental requirements of our beautiful woodland and wildflower meadow locations.

With sites at Oxton in Nottinghamshire, Markfield in Leicestershire and Ketton in Rutland, we’re conveniently located for those across the East Midlands and beyond.

Get in touch with us today if you’d like to know more or to reserve your own natural burial plot.