Category Archives: Writing a Eulogy

Writing a Eulogy for Your Father

If you had a father who has recently passed away then you’ll need to understand the basics of writing a eulogy for them. Writing a eulogy is probably one of the most difficult things that you’ll need to do, not just because of the structure and format, but because of the emotional investment you’ll need to make. Here are some steps to follow for writing a eulogy for your father.

Step #1: Collect

The first step towards writing your eulogy is to gather some information. What are were your favorite memories with your father? What were some of the memories that you have of him as a person? Are there any big life lessons that he taught you? Write down everything that comes to mind and don’t worry about writing too much – you can always trim it down letter during your final draft.

Step #2: Organize

Now that you’ve collected all of the stories and facts that you’d like to include in your eulogy, it’s time to start organizing everything. During your speech, try to avoid jumping around to different periods of time or different places when recalling memories. Instead, try to focus on only one or two of your best memories and talk about those. This isn’t a set rule, however, and there are no limit to how many stories you want to include.

Step #3: Start Writing

Like writing a college paper, you might need to write it two or three times before you get it right. Since this is a tribute to your father, make sure that you’ve properly constructed all of your paragraphs, sentences, and that all of your content flows naturally. It isn’t necessary to remove grammar or spelling errors since you’re going to be the only one reading the eulogy during the memorial ceremony.

Step #4: Rehearse

Practice reading your speech aloud as much as you can. The more you practice, the easier it will be to deliver it during the ceremony. Above all, don’t be nervous, and know that nobody is going to be judging you based on the quality of the speech about your father.

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Poems to Say at a Funeral

Poems can serve as emotionally captivating messages that should be incorporated into many memorial speech at a funeral. In the following sections, we’ll provide you with a few examples of poems that you can say when giving a eulogy.

Poem #1
If I were to die, and leave this world for a while, I would hope that my long life be memorialized by life and more smiles. For the sake of those who loved me most, I hope they find peace in their hearts, and that all of their unfinished tasks find enough time to manifest, because I am forever with you.

Poem #2
Stop all of the clocks, and turn off all of the telephones. Silence all of the music, and bring in the coffin. Allow the people who are mourning to gather around, as we help remember someone truly special without turning a frown.

As the blue skies cross over, and the quiet streets ahead turn low, I hope that you all see the great life I lived, as I must go now. So wash away the sadness, put away the grief, and please don’t let my death be in vein, I wish you all the best.

Poem #3
As I read this, an honest man rests. A good friend, lover, and father, who failed no test. Although you are gone, you are not forgotten, and I’ll cherish the memories we’ve knotted. Fill your heart with love, and revert back to youth, if there is another world, I’m sure he’ll feel soothed.

Poem #4
Although the time has come where she now must pass, I hope you all can raise a glass. Cheers to the woman who made a difference in our lives, and whose presence inspired everyone us all, despite our misfortunes. Allow this final salute not to go unnoticed, as we speak once more for this wonderful woman.

Speak From the Heart
When writing your own poems, or choosing ones to include in your eulogy, make sure that they speak from the heart, and that they accurately represent what you are feeling during these emotionally trying times.

How Do You Write a Eulogy?

A eulogy is a speech created for the sole purpose of commemorated your love and appreciation for a person who has died. These speeches are generally delivered either during the funeral or memorial service by individuals who were close to the deceased. Some of the more common characteristics associated with a quality eulogy include:

A shortened life history of the person who has passed away
Details about their passions, friends, family, career, and achievements
Your favorite memories about that person
Their favorite quotes, songs, or poems

Remember that the eulogies that are the most meaningful are the ones that come from the heart. A eulogy doesn’t need to be written flawlessly either. No matter what you write, you can be assured that the audience in attendance is going to accept it and appreciate it as much as you do.

How to Write a Eulogy – Steps to Know
Here are some simple steps that you can follow when learning how to write a eulogy:

1. Realize The Task at Hand: Remember that delivering and writing a eulogy is a big honor. This is your opportunity to let everyone know how the deceased made such a powerful impact in your life.

2. Recall Your Memories: Dig backwards and try to find your most precious memories with the deceased. They don’t need to be exceptionally exciting stories – just something that was special to you.

3. Gather Their Information: Gather information regarding their date of birth, age, relationships, education, work career, and even special interests. This will help you when writing your eulogy.

4. Organizing Everything: Finally, go through the information that you’ve gathered about the deceased and organize into whatever speaking style you’re comfortable with. If you’re a story teller, then recite interesting stories that you shared together. If your goal is to be open and vulnerable, choose touching aspects of their life and share it with everyone at the ceremony.

Delivering your eulogy sounds scary, but the truth is that nobody at the ceremony is there to judge you on the quality of your speech. They are there for the same reason you are – to help honor the deceased and celebrate their life.

Eulogy Speech for a Friend

Writing a eulogy speech for a friend isn’t much different than writing one for a family member. After all, if you’ve been chosen to give this speech, chances are good that you were close enough to the friend to consider them family anyway. With that being said, let’s look at a few tips that you can follow for writing an emotionally captivating eulogy speech for a friend.

Convey Their Positive Character Traits in Words
Everyone has something that makes them special – including your deceased friend. When writing your eulogy, try to think about all of the character traits that made them different. For example, were they outgoing? Generous? Kind? Try and find all of the right words that best describe who your friend really was.

Give an Example of Their Traits in the Form of a Story
Once you’ve determine what their positive traits were, portray them in the form of a story. For instance, if your friend was well-known for being selfless, then provide an ample of this within your speech, like this, “Johnny was always putting others before himself. When we were young, he took the blame for the mess in the kitchen so that I wouldn’t get in trouble – now you know mom and dad”.

Write With Your Heart, Not Your Mind
During this emotionally trying time, use your grief and sadness as a tool for writing an emotionally engaging speech that will help you heal. Don’t spend so much time trying to write the perfect eulogy and instead focus on helping the audience feel what you feel. Use your alone time to come up with ideas and write. Afterwards, share those ideas with family members and friends and ask for feedback to how you can make the speech flow better.

Conclusion
A final tip to remember is this – make sure that you include the deceased’s family in the eulogy. At the very least, you should thank them for allowing you the privilege to speak at the memorial ceremony. And when it comes time for delivery, take a deep breath, relax, and speak from the heart, because that’s what everyone came to hear.

How to Write a Eulogy Speech

Pronounced “Yule-ah-gee”, a eulogy, in its most basic form, is a speech that is written to help remember that positive qualities of someone who has passed away. Speeches like these are usually given during a funeral or memorial ceremony by a relative or close friend of the person who has died. In some cases, it can even be given by the religious leader.

Don’t Be Stressed Out Over Giving a Eulogy!

Try to imagine it as a simple conversation that you’re sharing with friends and family members about the life of the person who has passed away. Remember, the memorial ceremony is usually only going to include people who are related to or who know the deceased in some way, so they’re eager to hear anything you have to say that will honor the person who has died.
Most people are afraid of public speaking, but in this case, you aren’t really speaking to an “audience” – you’re speaking to a group of people who aren’t expecting you to give a flawless speech. There’s no “right away” to write a eulogy speech, but below are some tips that you should keep in mind when putting one together.

Qualities of a Well-Written Eulogy

Since most people have no clue about what a quality eulogy is supposed to sound like, let’s help you create one the way you want it. Here are some things that you can add into your own memorial speech:

A quick overview of the person’s life history
Important achievements that the person made in their life
Details about their hobbies, work, friends, and family
Your favorite memories of that person

Eulogies, on average, tend to be between three and five minutes long. However, if you feel that you have a lot to say, you can take a little longer than this or shorter depending on your preferences.
For instance, for a father who has passed away, each of his children can spend a minute or two giving a small speech about their favorite memories with him. By following these simple guidelines, writing a eulogy will be much easier.

How to Write a Funny Eulogy

For a lot of people, laughing and humor can actually be a good thing to incorporate in a eulogy – especially if the person who is deceased had a good sense of humor. Eulogies don’t always need to be about loss, sadness, or grief. They can sometimes include funny stories or memories, but you need to choose them carefully.

As a matter of fact, some of the “best” laughs that you’ll hear when giving a humorous analogy are from the people who knew the person well. Funny eulogies can help everyone better relate to the deceased, as well as make everything just a bit more light-hearted during this somber and emotionally trying time.

Writing a Funny Eulogy – Tips to Consider

Let’s take a look at some tips to consider when trying to write a funny eulogy:

Use Humorous Memories: Recalling a practical joke that was played by the deceased, or recalling a funny costume that they wore, can help lighten up the eulogy and make the atmosphere a little less gloomy.
Reveal an Inside Joke: Revealing an inside joke that you and the deceased may have had together is a great way to bring a smile to a few people’s faces during the memorial ceremony or funeral.
Discuss Happy Moments of Their Life: This is always welcomed, and can include recalling an exciting vacation or a 40th anniversary party. Do your best to illustrate these moments with your words so that you can show everyone how loved the deceased person was.

Like most eulogies, a funny one doesn’t have a set time span. However, do keep in mind that most of these speeches tend to fall within the three and five minute range. But don’t get caught up in the time, or being perfect, and instead focus on delivering the best speech that you can.

The Most Memorable Eulogies Can Be Humorous!

Some of the most memorable eulogies have been ones that are funny. And it wasn’t the jokes or punch lines that made them this way. It was simply the fact that humorous eulogies allow people to see (or relive) a side of the deceased that they never saw.

Eulogy Speech Ideas

Being asked to give a eulogy can make you feel both honored and nervous. Sometimes, when your emotions are running high, it can be difficult to choose the right words for your speech. In the following sections, we’ll help make the process a little easier by providing you with eulogy speech ideas for a friend (which can be used for family as well).

Eulogy for a Friend – Structure and Layout

Welcome

“First off, I’d like to thank everyone who showed up to day to help celebrate Adam’s life”.

Introduction

“As most of you probably already know, Adam and I have been best friends since grade school. We lived only five houses part, so it was easy for us to see each other nearly every day.”

Memories

“One of the most precious memories that I have of Adam was the time that he and I went camping in the woods. We spent the entire weekend hiking, climbing trees, and even looking for crayfish under rocks alongside the creek.”

Mentioning Family and Friends

“When you combine the fact that Adam was a kindhearted who wasn’t afraid to take risks, it isn’t difficult to see why it was so adored by his family and friends. It’s the reason why, during a terrible snowstorm, he ventured out on a cold Saturday day to try and deliver food and diapers to one of his family members who was stuck inside of their home. Sure, most people would have waited until morning, but Adam was didn’t give a second thought about it.”

Closing

“In closing, a lot of you might not know that Adam was a huge fan of the band Queen. In fact, he was particularly in love with a song called “Dear Friends”. Once, he even promised that if he passed away before I did, that I would need to play this song at his memorial. Well good friend, I’m sad to say that this time has home, and I hope that playing this song for everyone here today will help memorialize Adam and the great person that he was. Thank you.”

How to Write a Eulogy for a Friend

There’s no doubt that losing a close friend can an emotionally challenging experience. But writing a eulogy to honor them and celebrate their life can provide you with some inner peace, and is a great way to heal.

Writing a Eulogy is an Honor – Choose the Right Words to Say

Writing a eulogy is an honor. Although a bit scary, it’s certainly a privilege when you get an opportunity to help share all of the positive memories that you and your friend once shared. This is a chance to talk about their positive character, their achievements, and qualities as a person. If you and your friend shared an exceptionally close relationship, coming up with things to write about shouldn’t be difficult.

What Favorite Memories Did You Both Share Together?

What are some of the fondest memories that stand out between you and your friend? Did you both take a road trip together? Did you attend a concert? Or throw a surprise party? Sort through your memories and choose ones in which both you and your friend were at your happiest. The audience wants to hear about all of the good times that you both shared, and mentioning positive memories is also a great way to heal.

It Doesn’t Need to Be Read Like a Script

Most people think that after finishing the final draft of your eulogy for your friend, you need to read it word for word at the ceremony. It doesn’t need to be this way though. In fact, your eulogy can just serve as a guideline as you convey your feelings. If you choose to read the eulogy word for word as a script, that’s fine too. However, some people find it easier to write down tidbits of memories and then finish the remainder of the speech on their own.

Mention The Friend’s Family

Remember that you’re probably going to be reading your eulogy in front of the deceased’s family, so make sure that you mention them. Explain how your friend was a quality family person, and how they positively affected their family in ways that they will

How to Write a Eulogy for Your Father

Writing a eulogy can be a humbling experience, and will allow you to really cherish those memories that had with your deceased father. Think of a eulogy as not only a remembrance speech of your father, but also as a way to share the beauty of your father’s life with those who are closest to you. Let’s take a look at some tips and strategies that you can use when learning how to write a eulogy for your father.

1. Speak With the Funeral Director Beforehand
A funeral director will be able to go over the funeral process with you, as well as prepare you for when you’ll need to be ready to deliver your eulogy speech.

2. Find and Write Down Your Most Precious Memories with Your Father
This can include stories and memories that you shared with your father, as well as those memories that he had with colleagues and friends. To come up with ideas, interview family members and friends of your father. Try to come up with a general consensus of what people thought about him.

3. Make Your Eulogy Flow
A good eulogy is one that flows naturally, and that doesn’t bounce around from timeline to timeline. When creating your speech, capture all of the positive traits of your father, and divide the speech into several sections including: work, family members, honors, passions, and friends. Organization is the key to a good remembrance speech.

4. Make Sure to Thank Everyone for Coming
This might only be a minor detail, but it’s an important one. In your eulogy, make sure that you acknowledge everyone who showed up to your father’s funeral and/or memorial service.

5. Bullet Points vs. Paragraphs – How Can You Know Which One to Choose?
If you’re someone who speaks better when reading from bullet points or an outline then by all means feel free to use this method. However, if you’re a nervous speaker who needs guidance then write out a complete script and simply follow it word to word. Place trust in your eulogy and know that this is going to not only help you remember your father but also help with the healing process.

How to Write a Proper Funeral Memorial Speech

A funeral memorial speech
If you have been asked to recite a funeral memorial speech, you are being asked to honor the deceased through the power of words. You are probably a family member, loved one, or close friend of the one that passed, therefore you have intimate yet wonderful stories you can share with others about how they lived their lives. In order to write a good eulogy, you should already think of the overall theme or approach. To think about it, you should spend a few hours thinking it, as you don’t want to rush it. Feel free to keep a journal or notebook close by so you can write notes about the theme or any short stories you want to add to the funeral memorial speech.

Tips in writing a funeral memorial speech

Don’t forget to introduce yourself, in just a few words as there will be some attendees who may not know your relation to the deceased.
Always customize the eulogy – this makes it more sincere and heartfelt, by expressing your own personal feelings as well as thoughts. Always avoid any negative comments or memories as these are hurtful for those who love the deceased. You may even add some photos.
Share unique, funny moments you may have had with them, or any important lessons you learned.

Sample funeral speech

“My name is Michael, I have been a long time friend of John’s, way back since our high school days. He’s been lucky enough to live the amazing life he had, he’s been able to travel the world and I have to say all that traveling certainly made him more mature and cultured than the rest of us. He’s always been the one with the most logical and rational decisions amongst all of us, as he’s played the brother figure very well. I’m sure when you think of John, you all think of someone who matured young, and who has a good head on his shoulders. All of us friends were lucky to have a friend in our lives such as John, who has inspired us all to become better in everything we do.”

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