Man throws boyfriend 'surprise funeral' for his birthday
‘He instructed everyone to ignore me so it would be like I was a ghost visiting my own wake,' recalls Eli McCann
A man has gone viral on Twitter after revealing that his boyfriend threw him a "funeral" as his birthday party in 2017.
Eli McCann shared photographs from the occasion and explained that he arrived at his 33rd birthday party to find his very own funeral.
Mr McCann's partner, Skylar Westerdahl (whom he has since married), had decided to throw him a funeral because he felt like “people shouldn’t have to die in order for their friends to gather and say why they loved them”.
Writing on Twitter alongside four photos, Mr McCann explained: “In 2017 my husband (then boyfriend) threw a surprise funeral for my birthday.”
Mr McCann added: “He instructed everyone to ignore me so it would be like I was a ghost visiting my own wake.”
The photos show how Westerdahl set up a wake in the couple's home.
A coffin-shaped structure has been covered with a casket spray while a photograph of Mr McCann as a young boy is standing beside it alongside a candle.
There is also a sign next to another photograph that reads "please take a card and share a memory of Eli W McCann.
In subsequent tweets, Mr McCann described the event as “the weirdest thing I’ve ever walked into”.
“There were musical numbers and a slideshow to ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’ by Bette Midler," he added.
"He melts my heart constantly, but especially when his expressions of love get weird."
Mr McCann also revealed that his mother helped his boyfriend to produce orders of service for the event.
The order of service includes a prelude, a eulogy, and a portion for “remarks and reflections”.
Another one of his friends, Meg, wrote an obituary.
“Although he did not die peacefully, he left this world the only way he would have wanted - as the centre of attention.” it reads.
“Friends remember Eli as a warm, kind and oftentimes generous soul, who loved those who loved him, but not as much as he loved his own hair.”
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