Before I Go
About The Book
BEFORE I GO by Verna Scott-Culkin -
A unique journal ‘You’ create
Before I Go is a beautiful personal journal/book, that gives anyone the chance to record treasured memories, thoughts (even final wishes) to leave a unique memory book and lasting a legacy to comfort those loved ones left behind.
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So if you knew you were leaving loved ones behind (for any reason) what would you want to tell them? What would you want to pass on, to share? What would you want them to know about you that maybe you never said?
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If we had the chance wouldn't we all choose to leave this world and our loved ones with some of our invaluable advice and musings?
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BEFORE I GO is a personal journal allowing you to pass on the little pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that make up the IRREPLACEABLE you.
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Fill it with all the things that matter to you. Fill it in privately or with everyone's knowledge. Record your memories, thoughts and wishes for your family and friends, creating a personal memory book as you go.
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With pages to fill in, ranging from 'Wise Words' to 'Favourite Songs, Poems' and 'Films' and 'Wishes For Your Family' to 'Milestones to Celebrate', there's even a space for a sealed 'My Send Off' envelope for your final wishes.
Write, Stick, Staple - make it your own - messy or pristine. Add anything that means something to you, if a page or section doesn't apply to you - change it, or if you have lots to say add a few more pages. If you haven't got, say, any Recipes for the 'Recipes to remember' pages, how about your recipe for a Happy Life, a Good Relationship or getting a Baby to Sleep? Or a great cold remedy?
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Our beautiful book should gently lead people (through the various headings) to think about their own mortality and lasting legacy, without sitting down looking at a blank piece of paper.
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It allows anyone to plan how they’d like to be remembered, record their favourite memories, words of wisdom, specific wishes. Whether those wishes are for their funeral or what they’d like to happen afterwards, things they’d still like people to celebrate.
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Our book has been featured in the press recently. In the London Evening Standard and the Blackpool Gazette.
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We've also recently been selected as an #SBS weekly winner by Theo Paphitis. This has gained us lots of new Twitter followers and raised the profile of the book.
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Receiving our SBS Winners certificate from Theo.
Latest News
We were lucky enough to get a lovely review for 'Before I Go' in The Evening Standard
'Before I Go' was also featured in the Funeral Service Journal
We were also asked by Angela Moore, our local Admiral Nurse (@lamplight58), to speak at Hichingbrooke Hospital's first dementia conference. It was a great experience with lots of interesting speakers, including Tommy Whitelaw (@tommyNtour)
The lovely Jeremy Sallis from BBC Radio Cambridgeshire invited Verna onto his lunchtime show to talk about Before I Go.
You can listen to it via BBC iPlayer here. Or below.
We recently had a brilliant piece on the Huffington Post
A lovely review of Before I Go on the BBC
Having lost my Father to Cancer and Mother-in-law to Alzheimer’s, we now have two very empty chairs around the dinner table at our lovely and regular family get togethers.
Around the same time one of my closest friends was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.
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She was a busy mum of two young kids, working, running the house and I wondered what would happen if she wasn't there anymore? Yes life would go on, her husband would cope, people would help, the kids would grow up but what if there was a guide to 'her' that she could leave behind (she was a lucky one and she made a full recovery).
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So, me and my husband talked about a book that could be filled with love, advice, wishes and even recipes – something my dad may have filled in privately and my mother-in-law could have filled in on her ‘good’ days and my friend, just to fill in and take control of something when her world felt it was collapsing around her.
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We couldn’t find another book like it, a book that the reader fills in to then pass on when the time came, SO we created one – somehow I'm a mum, swimming teacher and now publisher and author!
So many people, when they leave this world, take all their thoughts, hopes, sayings and wishes with them – maybe we should all have ‘THAT’ conversation and start putting pen to paper.
Everyone that sees the book looks at it from a different perspective, that just makes YOUR book more unique. The most common thing I hear is ‘I wish I’d had something like this when my mum/dad or loved one died’. This book will give people the chance to write down all those special thoughts and memories, so they’ll NEVER be forgotten.
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Far from being morbid, we hope your book will be full of love and give those left behind a useful, thought provoking, funny and unique memory book.
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Truly made with love.
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I’m Verna, married to Giles (who did all the design work on the book), mum of 2, and owner of 2 rescue dogs. We live in Cambridgeshire and have a wonderful family and fantastic friends. (The secret of my Chewy Chocolate Fudge Brownies and recipe are going in my book, for future generations to enjoy x)
The Story Behind 'Before I Go…'
About the book since we first published in 2016.
We published Before I Go in 2016, and although the story behind us deciding to create and publish it remains the same, in the years since, many things have happened that have made the book even more personal to us.
In 2018 my mum was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She faced her treatment (as she did everything else) head on, practical and never complaining.
Chemo and double mastectomy later she was all good.
The first Covid lockdown came and went.
A few days after losing my Nan in October 2020 I went to hospital with my mum to discover she had a brain tumour.
The second Covid lockdown hit hard, she was exhausted with all the hospital appointments and friends and family were unable to visit her.
We looked after her at her home for her last Christmas.
She passed away on a beautifully cold, snowy, sunny morning in January 2021.
She was an amazing Mum, Nan, Sister, Auntie and friend to many and because of Covid many had not been able to say their final goodbyes, or even attend her funeral.
As I sat in my mum’s front room that sunny, snowy morning letting people know she had died, I saw her 'Before I Go' sitting on her coffee table under some other books.
She had filled in some sections of it and I cried (and smiled) as I read them.
So Mum, because of your scribbles (and your love of ‘The Full Monty’ film, we did indeed play ‘Hot Stuff’ by Donna Summer as we all said our final goodbyes at your funeral.
And your Pavlova recipe went in your order of service and I made it not long after, it was fabulous… just like you x
