Daughter's unconventional obituary for late mother amuses people with its bizarreness

Some obituaries are written with such raw emotion, they can make even strangers tear up. But every now and then, an obituary comes along that’s not just heartfelt—it’s hilarious. One such obituary, written by Christina Mills Novak for her "terrorizing" mom, recently made waves for its brutal honesty. Novak didn’t hold back in describing how difficult her mother had been, and ever since its publication in Central Maine in late August, the obituary has gone viral.

The obituary began, "Florence 'Flo' Harrelson, 65, formerly of Chelsea, died on Feb. 22, 2024, without family by her side due to burnt bridges and a wake of destruction left in her path." While it may seem a bit callous to speak about her late mother's equation with the family, Novak tried to keep the obituary mirthful. "Florence did not want an obituary or anyone including family to know she died. That’s because even in death, she wanted those she terrorized to still be living in fear looking over their shoulders," the daughter added. The way she saw it, the obituary was more of a "public service announcement," rather than a grieving daughter's tribute to her mom. 

Novak shared the news snippet of this death announcement on her TikTok account @murms76 and the video quickly went viral. As the song, "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" from the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz," played in the background, the daughter captioned the video, "Found a song fitting for the PSA on my mother." @laurelrosenberg commented, "Omg! This is so my mom! I’m so happy you’re at peace!" @talk711 quipped, "I bet writing and publishing this was so therapeutic." @unpopularstacy added, "My goodness! I cannot imagine what you’ve been through. I hope you are able to enjoy your newfound peace!"

In just four days, Novak’s video racked up over 122,000 views. Sharing this news in a Facebook post, Novak wrote, "Since this is blowing up, come and share a laugh. And if anyone needs help writing a PSA, let me know." People who knew Novak's late mother tried to reason with her saying that Harrelson's terrifying nature was because she was a marine. Looks like, Harrelson was terrifying way before that. "And please, stop bringing up she was a Marine for four years a very long time ago, there are horror stories and a list of people she victimized before she joined," Novak added. Shortly after the aforementioned revelation by Novak, she shared another instance where her mother showed unpleasant behavior. 

One of the participants, fondly known as "Wild Bill," from the reality show "Maine Cabin Masters," was Harrelson's brother and Novak's uncle. "When my Uncle Bill passed away, as soon as my mother found out, she went over to my Uncle's and ripped his place off. Not just once but twice that we know of," Novak wrote in her Facebook post. "She then tried to manipulate my cousin (Bill's daughter) and when that didn't work, she sent my cousin nasty messages and tried to cause drama but was unsuccessful," she added. The daughter's sense of humor eventually turned a sad occurrence into a hilarious story on the internet.