From This Is Bristol:
I WANT to share a distressing experience with your readers. Last Monday(12th) was my Mum’s funeral it was at 12.30 at Canford Crematorium.
We were waiting for the hearse to come to our house and at about 12.10 it had still not arrived I rang the funeral company in case they had gone straight to Canford by mistake. I could hardly believe it when they told me the hearse had been delayed because the driveway was blocked by a van delivering to a kebab shop nearby.
Apparently the lady directing the funeral, one of the staff from the funeral parlour and even a rag man collecting from another shop in the rank had all asked the van driver and/ or staff in the kebab shop to move the van to no avail.
Because we were late everyone rushed in to the crematorium and my poor husband who relies on a mobility scooter was still trying to park it up and sit in a pew as the opening address ended. Everyone was very upset because it was obvious we were late and the service was rushed, though the funeral company and minister tried very hard to minimise the impact this had on those of us who were mourning the loss of my Mum.
For the dead, time stands still. For the living, awareness of time, on funeral day, is never more acute. Damn you, kebab shop. Damn you, crem timetable. This is the way we do things, and there’s absolutely no need for it, idiot kebab shops or no.
“This is the way we do things” Sometimes, unfortunately. But hopefully less so, thanks in part to the work of those on this blog, the NDC etc. I guess its good to realise the work is not done – and probably we’re just getting started, aren’t we?
Yes, Jon!
Some things don’t change for the better. When I was a kid (wake up at the back!) such was the cultural response to funerals that I can’t imagine any pig-ignorant slob of a van driver not moving so they could get the hearse out. I do hope the kebab shop was named and shamed somewhere.
As for crem timetables….
Shocking – kind of. I really feel for you and your bad funeral experience.
These days people are much less likely to understand or respect funeral vehicles or those involved in what for most of us, is still a very difficult event. I do try and position my vehicles early, but most funeral directors will think that this could easily happen to them.
There was an article on Radio 2 (the raidio jumped out of tune from Radio 4 alright?) about just this sort of thing a couple of months ago. The more airtime it gets the more we will change things. Tight timetabling for dollar-chasing crems and a generation of people who have not been shown what is expected of them in certain circumstances leaves us with what we currently have. I would never compromise a funeral for one of my families. If they were unavoidably late, they would get their (measly) half an hour slot regardless of those following. A pox on the kebab man’s home!