How To Write A Heartfelt Eulogy: 26 Quotes To Help Tell Your Loved One's Life Story. Eulogy Writer Advice.
Using Quotes When Writing A Eulogy To Help Tell Your Loved One's Life Story.
Do you want to know a simple yet powerful way of capturing and telling a life story when writing a eulogy?
Writing over 700 hundred eulogies has given me the privilege and honour of telling fascinating life stories. Every life is unique. Every life is extraordinary. Every life has a story. Some life stories are easier to find than others. Yet, in every instance, there is always a story to tell.
How can you, in a few words, capture the life story of the person you want to write a eulogy for?
You could find the answer by using a suitable quote to emphasise or highlight something remarkable or memorable in their life. You can use someone else’s words to shine a spotlight on their character. It works so well; I use it often when writing a eulogy.
In this blog post, you will learn why to use quotes, and where you can find an unlimited resource of the most relevant quotes possible. Also, here are 26 examples of quotes you could use when you write a eulogy for your loved one or friend.
I have used everyone one of them when writing a eulogy. So I know how helpful they can be in describing a loved one’s life story.
Why Use A Quote When Telling A Life Story In A Eulogy?
Sharing stories and memories about a loved one when writing a heartfelt eulogy is always an emotional experience. It's hard to find the words to say, I understand.
But by adding quotes to the eulogy you are writing, you can make it resonate with much more personality. Using meaningful quotes to add to your eulogy brings depth to your loved one’s life story in ways our words alone might not.
There is another reason as well.
Here’s something I’ve observed in writing those hundreds of eulogies. When I have used a relevant and appropriate quote in writing a eulogy, it often ends up being the phrase or words that help people remember the person the most.
Let me explain more.
Four reasons you might add quotes when writing a eulogy:
To Emphasise a Point: Quotes can help highlight an important aspect of a loved one’s life, such as a character trait or a significant accomplishment.
To Add a Unique Perspective: Using a quote can help offer different perspectives on a memory or experience you shared with your loved one.
To Provide Comfort: A well-chosen quote can offer comfort to those who are sad by expressing emotions and feelings, but are finding it difficult to put them into words. A quote can say what you want to say, when you can’t find the best phrase.
To Honour Their Life Story: Incorporating quotes can describe their interests, beliefs, and values to those listening to your eulogy powerfully and memorably. Especially if it highlights or describes an overriding life theme.
Overall, quotes can help make a eulogy more memorable, and help you and the people at the funeral service or celebration of life feel more connected to your loved one and their life story.
Choosing the Right Quotes For A Eulogy: Tips for Finding Inspirational Words that Resonate From A Eulogy Writer.
Finding a suitable quote is critical. Don’t use a quote unless it adds depth and connects with the person. Think about their hobbies, beliefs, or causes that were important to them. Choose quotes that recall their emotions, such as love, gratitude, or kindness.
Let’s say the overriding theme their of their life was kindness. How can you go about finding a suitable quote to express that kindness in their life?
Start with a web search, “Quotes about Kindness.” One of my go to resources is Goodreads. This is an excellent place to start. Try this list here: https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/kindness
Another place is BrainyQuote. Try this list on their site. https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/kindness-quotes
You can take inspiration from their favourite books, songs or poetry. Who was their favourite author? Could you use a quote from them? Did they have a catch phrase or saying they always used? Maybe those are the lines that could bring a memory back?
Remember, keep the quotes simple and easy to understand. Choose quotes that are not too long or complex. Avoid overly philosophical quotes that might be hard to relate to. Quotes can be powerful, but use them sparingly.
26 Quotes To Help Tell Your Loved One’s Life Story.
Here are 26 quotes I have used in eulogies over the years. Thank you to all the authors who have penned these words, giving their creativity to make the world beautiful for others.
Please, use them if you can, but always give due recognition to the original author.
26 Quotes To Help Tell Your Loved One’s Life Story.
‘I don’t want to get to the end of my life and find that I just lived the length of it. I want to live the width of it as well.’ Diane Ackerman.
‘Every man dies. Not every man really lives.’ William Wallace.
‘Often the difference between a successful person and a failure is not one’s better abilities or ideas, but the courage that one has to bet on one’s ideas, to take a calculated risk—and to act.’ André Malraux.
‘Yours is the light by which my spirit’s born: - you are my sun, my moon, and all my stars.’ E. E. Cummings.
‘To the world you may be one person but to one person you may be the world.’ Bill Wilson
‘I could not tell you if I loved you the first moment I saw you, or if it was the second or third or fourth. But I remember the first moment I looked at you walking toward me and realised that somehow the rest of the world seemed to vanish when I was with you.’ Cassandra Clare.
‘So much of what is best in us is bound up in our love of family, that it remains the measure of our stability because it measures our sense of loyalty.’ Haniel Long.
‘If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude.’ Colin Powell.
‘The strength of a man is in his character. A strong man is a great man of wisdom who understands his top priority is to his family.’ Ellen J. Barrier.
‘Sharing tales of those we’ve lost is how we keep from really losing them.’ Mitch Albom.
‘The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.’ Eleanor Roosevelt.
‘This is part of what a family is about, not just love. It’s knowing that your family will be there watching out for you. Nothing else will give you that. Not money. Not fame. Not work.’ Mitch Albom.
‘I am content; that is a blessing greater than riches; and he to whom that is given need ask no more.’ Henry Fielding
‘Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it’s less good than the one you had before. You can fight it, you can do nothing but scream about what you’ve lost, or you can accept that and try to put together something that’s good.’ Elizabeth Edwards.
‘If you have strength of character, you can use that as fuel to not only be a survivor, but to transcend simply being a survivor. Use an internal alchemy to turn something rotten and horrible into gold.’ Zeena Schreck.
‘I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it.’ Maya Angelou.
‘Life changes in the instant. The ordinary instant.’ Joan Didion.
‘In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you,’ Jack Kornfield.
‘You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.’ Kahlil Gibran.
‘The most truly generous persons are those who give silently without hope of praise or reward.’ Carol Ryrie Brink.
‘Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.’ Desmond Tutu.
‘Attitude is a choice. Happiness is a choice. Optimism is a choice. Kindness is a choice. Giving is a choice. Respect is a choice. Whatever choice you make makes you. Choose wisely.’ Roy T. Bennett.
‘Life becomes easier and more beautiful when we can see the good in other people.’ Roy T. Bennett.
‘Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.’ Marcel Proust.
‘I hold that a strongly marked personality can influence descendants for generations.’ Beatrix Potter.
‘A gentleman is one who puts more into the world than he takes out.’ George Bernard Shaw.
In conclusion, every life story is unique and worth telling, and using quotes in a eulogy can help make it more impactful and memorable.
Whether you use a quote to emphasise a point, add a unique perspective, provide comfort, or honour their life story, it can add depth and personality to your loved one’s life story.
If you need help in writing a eulogy, perhaps we could work together? Check out my eulogy writing services, or send me an email - info@memorablewords.co.uk.
Coming Soon A Complete and Comprehensive Eulogy Writing Toolkit!
‘I Just Want To Say A Few Words.’ – A Simple and Easy Step-by-Step Guide How To Write a Eulogy for A Loved One, Friend or Colleague.
A Simple Four Step Process For Writing A Eulogy That Works!
10 worksheets to guide your words.
6 Bonus Resources sharing advice from 10 years of writing eulogies!