Detail of a painting of a skull & man's hand in 'St Jerome' by Caravaggio, ca. 1605 (© Mondadori Portfolio/UIG/Getty Images)

DIY obituaries prove we're a nation of control freaks

10/8/2012

Your obituary used to be something you could guiltlessly leave to your loved ones to worry about. Alas, those days may be dead and gone. The living are increasingly taking it upon themselves to write their own death notices, seeing it as a prime opportunity to shape their legacy while they're still upright enough to do so. (You'd think the aging and the ailing had enough to worry about.) "Sometimes it's handwritten, typed or they will bring a printout from a computer," says Rick Waites, a Palm Beach, Fla., funeral director. "The only thing missing is the date of death." Some things still remain beyond our control. [Source]

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