GUEST POST: The Multiple Personalities of the Funeral Director

Thank you to guest poster – Paige Kaina – for sharing this awesome post and observation.  I think we all can relate. – Katy

Last weekend our family went camping with one of my husband’s old friends from Mortuary School and his family. We had such a great time hanging out with friends who understand who we are and what we do.  We did not have to answer those silly questions about being a funeral director. We could just be ourselves with no phones and no internet, just family, kids, a campfire, and fishing!

Late one night by the campfire just the adults were left to chat and the subject came up of all of the different personalities of our Funeral Director husbands, and they actually agreed and contributed to the conversation!  This is what we came up with:

1. The ON CALL funeral director. He is very quiet, sulky, grumpy, and not terribly fun to be around. He jumps at every sound his phone makes and can run out the door at any minute with hardly an explanation.  This guy shows up based on your schedule, 1-2 weeks a month.  The family really does NOT look forward to this time and we really try to stay out of the way.

2. The OFF CALL guy.  He is a bit more fun to be around, a little more talkative, tries to make up for his time away while on call, and really works to get things done. I like this guy most of the time, but he still has his phone for “just in case” things that can happen, you know how that is!

3. The VACATION man – as our friend says WOOOHOOO PARTAYYY!!  He is a fun partying guy. Anything goes. He just wants to let it go and forget everything at work.  NO PHONE!!

On a vacation that my hubby and I took last year, I begged him to let this fun loving man stay around forever, even while at home, and he told me that would not be “realistic”. Darn reality!!

As wives of these men, my friend and I decided that we must be really strong women to have to deal with all of these personalities in our men, but it is totally worth it.  Sometimes it can be extremely frustrating, especially when the “ON CALL” guy is around and thinks that we just don’t get why he can’t be home on time, or why he has to rush out the door.  But we do get it, we don’t have to like it, but we understand.

I really don’t blame him for being grumpy and quiet, waiting for the phone to ring at any given moment.  We must push through this tough week and look forward to next week…especially the few weeks a year where we get our “VACATION” man back.

Thanks again – Paige Kaina – for your terrific post.  If you share life with a funeral director and have an idea you would like to write about, please contact me!