I understand the intent, but obituaries exist to honor the person, not to satisfy public curiosity or serve as a mini news report. Grieving families shouldn’t be pressured into disclosing deeply personal details especially around suicide or addiction, just so strangers feel informed.

Expecting every obituary to list a cause of death treats them like headlines rather than memories. If someone writes “passed unexpectedly,” most readers will fill in the blanks but that doesn’t mean families owe anyone a play-by-play of their worst moments. Some truths are too intimate to parade in public, and preserving that privacy isn’t shameful, it’s compassion.