When someone experiences a loss, be they close to you or just an acquaintance, it is often greatly appreciated when you send them a token of your sympathy. However, it can be really difficult to know what to write in a sympathy card, and what type of card you can send. These situations are very delicate, and it is best to be careful and thoughtful about what you choose to convey. With some deliberation, you can send a great and moving sympathy card to someone to let them know that you care and are there for them in this difficult time. This article goes over:

How to Find a Sympathy Card

While it shouldn’t be overly important what the card actually looks like, it is important to take the appearance or presentation of the card into consideration, to make sure you send something that is appropriate and not in poor taste or a strange choice in some way. Aesthetics usually do not matter too much when you send your card, but it is best to choose something that is tasteful and simple, as most sympathy cards are. It may be a good idea to choose a card that is not overly cliched in some way, or is not overly tragic, as this can just upset the person or people that you are sending the card to.

You need to endeavor to find the best sympathy card that you can to send to the people in mourning. This can be through searching online if necessary, as it is very easy to purchase cards online from a variety of different suppliers or online shops. You can, of course, also buy a card at a store. Stores often have sections for different types of cards, and there are shops that specialize in selling different kinds of cards. These are a great place to find sympathy cards, as they almost always have a great selection or range to choose from. This way, you can make sure you find the best possible card for the situation.

Ways to Write your Sympathy Card

While your gesture should be appreciated, it is often best to avoid simply writing cliched messages in the card like ‘we are sorry for your loss.’ These messages show that you care and appreciate the person or people in mourning, but they are not very personal, and can even feel insincere or disingenuous, depending on the person. There are many different ways to word a sympathy card, and this can make it difficult and stressful. You do not want to offend or upset the people in mourning even more than they already are. However, you shouldn’t worry too much about that, and focus instead on writing the best card that you can.

A nice idea for a structure of a sympathy card is to focus on the positive aspects of the life of the person who has passed away. A card is usually fairly small, so you have a limited amount of space to do this in. This is especially great to do if you knew the person who passed away fairly well, or if you have fond memories of them. You can remind the family through your card of great times you all shared together. It can seem a little odd to bring up positive experiences or memories at a time of grief, but it is often better to focus on the positive than the negative in such situations. There is no need to make people feel worse than they possibly already do.

If you did not know the deceased too well, but you have a good idea of their character or personality, then you can write a card that includes a message focusing on some positive aspect or aspects of who they were. If they were well-loved in the community, for example, then you can mention this, and draw attention to how popular they were. If they were a great parent or spouse, then you can talk about that instead. Again, it is often best to focus on positive aspects of the deceased, as this can help the family to reflect fondly upon them and their memories of them.

It is also often wise to acknowledge that words cannot make the situation any easier for the family in your card. People sometimes feel that their grief is not taken seriously or that people simply write clichés to them, so it is often appreciated when someone states that words cannot not make them feel better about what they are going through.

What You Should Always Include in a Sympathy Card

It is vital that a sympathy card is sympathetic and sincere. You need to show the family of the deceased that you truly care for them and what they are going through. It is often greatly appreciated to show in some way that you are happy to help the family if needed, and in whatever way that you can. While you want to show the family that you care, however, it is also important that you do not write anything insincere or that you think just sounds nice. Many people receive false and disingenuous messages when they experience loss, and it can be very refreshing for someone to simply show that they sympathize with the situation, without going into any clichés or dramatic statements about life and loss.

You can tell the family that you are writing to that you are going to check in with them soon, for example. This is a great and concrete way to demonstrate that you are there to support them, and that you truly empathize with them in their time of need. It is also always nice to tell the family that you are thinking of them or that they are in your thoughts, as another way to show your support or care for them.