Vicky Phelan has revealed she’s made plans for her funeral and wants it to be a celebration of life.
The mum-of-two is currently in the US undergoing a new cancer treatment trial in a bid to shrink her tumours, but she wants to be prepared and has spent the last number of weeks making sure all of her arrangements are in order.
Vicky doesn’t want her funeral to be a sad occasion, but instead, one which marks and honours her life through beautiful music.
“As far as my affairs go, I have everything in order, I am one of those people. And I am a control freak so I pretty much have my funeral planned,” she told Ray D’Arcy on RTE Radio One.
“I have The Stunning and I have asked Bressie to play a wonderful song I came across. He has also written a song inspired by me which is coming out soon.
“I want it to be a celebration, I don’t want it to be a mournful, awful day. We all know this is coming so I would rather it be a celebration and, for me, music is a big thing.”
While it’s been an incredibly tough time for Vicky and those around her, she believes her diagnosis has brought her closer to her loved one.
“I often find with cancer patients, people like me who are terminal and know what is coming. You get the time to say things to people that sometimes you don’t get,” she said.
“We are very bad in Ireland at telling people you love them. We wouldn’t have been great in my family at saying ‘I love you’ or giving hugs.
“Now we are all doing it and that was driven by me having cancer and being in this situation. I have no regrets, everyone I love knows I love them.”
Vicky is set to remain in the US for another few months as she continues her treatment, before returning to Ireland this summer.