Funeral of the Elderly Barren

One of the things I wonder about as a pastor is what my funeral will be like.  I have the privilege and honor of officiating many a saints service of passing and in the process of preparing such a service I get to provide pastoral care and counseling for their families.  Most frequently I meet with the deceased's kids, sometimes his or her spouse, and rarely a niece or nephew.  But what becomes of the person who dies of old age without any kids?  The individual who has been "home bound" - living in a care center for years with occasional visits from her pastor and maybe an elder from the church with which she identifies.  Perhaps this is why these individuals grab my heart so - because I see my potential future and I do not want their last years here, nor their death to be neglected.

It would be satisfying to know that perhaps some youth that I have mentored along the way, or the child of a family I have helped would come alongside me and care for me. But who would plan my funeral?

The grief of infertility rears its ugly head at moments like these.  A reminder that one's future is unlike the future once conceived in the tender mind of youth.

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