Slice of Life: ‘I used to be scared of everything, now I run a funeral service’

I got into the hearse business 25 years ago, after my marriage. At that time, I was very scared of everything. I wouldn’t even look at the bodies, let alone touch them.

Now, I’m used to seeing death all around me. Customers will call me and tell me that the hearse is not cooling, and I’ll go to their homes to check on it. They tell me: “Oh, his eye is popping out” or “Oh, his skin is turning a strange colour” but I always tell them that the ice is there and the box in which the body is kept works just fine.

From what I’ve seen all these years, the rich don’t care for the dead. The poor, despite all their hardship, will spend all that they have for a big funeral. They would be sobbing and crying next to the body. The rich, for all their wealth, sometimes don’t even look at the body. They don’t cry.

I’ve learned that man commands respect only when he is alive. Once you’re dead, the respect vanishes. Take for example the way people even refer to the dead – once they’re gone, the person is not called by their name anymore. They’re just referred to as “the body”.

But some people love their family so much. Several times, I have had my hearse called in for a dog. I’ve had a german shepherd and a pug in the case, and the families were heartbroken. Death isn’t just for humans, but grieving is something all humans do.