DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: I know I’m old-fashioned, but what’s the deal with people dressing down for viewings and funerals nowadays? And it isn’t just young people. I’ve seen plenty of middle-aged people doing it too. I haven’t noticed it so much at my own church, but I’ve certainly seen it enough times throughout my community.
I was raised to believe that dressing well shows respect for both the deceased and their loved ones. --- NOT APPROPRIATE
DEAR NOT APPROPRIATE: Unfortunately, it seems dressing up for even the most solemn occasions is falling by the wayside in our age of universal casualness in dress. In the case of funerals in particular I agree it demonstrates respect to put in some effort in honor of the person who’s passed on and those mourning them.
I also acknowledge that there are understandable circumstances, including a lack of funds preventing some people from having dressier clothing in their wardrobe. Others might only be able to show up in work clothes for a variety of reasons. In such cases, the more important thing is that they attend the funeral, rather than shy away because of what they have on at the time of the event.
For the majority of others, though, there’s little or no excuse for coming to pay their final respects looking like they’re on their way to a ballgame.