Most New Zealanders are woefully unprepared for one of the few certainties of life - death, but a little forward planning can make saying goodbye to a loved one that much easier.
"It's one of the certainties, obviously about life, is that you will die," says Neil Little of the Funeral Directors Association. "It is a scary time, it's a very scary time, partly because its unfamiliar."
Funeral directors say it is never too soon for families to discuss and start planning for funerals.
"We'll spend at least 12 months preparing for a wedding, and people often come to us the day a person has died. And we try to arrange a similar event in two or three days," says Little.
Diane Miller's husband Graeme died just over a fortnight ago. The 83-year-old was diagnosed with terminal cancer and died less than a month later.
"His feet were so cold, it was really a strange experience. You feel a bit numb that this is happening and you can't stop it," she says.
"We used to sit here at night and talk and play music, and he said 'well I think we should talk about funerals', which we did. And he told me very simply within a few minutes, he said 'well we'll do this, this and this'.
In the mortuary, Little explains how the embalming process takes place on a table, using chemicals.
He says the chemicals are mixed water using a machine and then the embalming fluid is introduced under pressure.
Every body that arrives is recorded in a book, including any jewellery the person was wearing.
Little says the book makes sobering reading, but is a very important part of what they do.
And with television programmes like Six Feet Under getting people used to talking about death, you can now plan for your own, online.
Little says people often do not know who to call first when someone passes away. But if they have time to look through that and understand the options open to them, that should help them.
Miller recommends discussing funeral arrangements.
"If you have the opportunity to discuss with that person it is so much easier, because I would hate Graeme to have died and not known what he would have liked, and have had to make it up without his help."
