I want more then a party when I die!
Americans are embracing cremation as their preferred choice when making funeral plans today. About 45% according to the Cremation Association of America. Working in Hospice Care or the funeral biz, we hear it all the time. “Just scatter my ashes and have a party”.
I don’t want all that fuss involved with a funeral. It sounds good and simple, but does not create a very healing environment or a carefully planned ceremony that will shine a positive light on your life. Most people want to feel that their life mattered and that the things they believe in and the projects they have started will be remembered and hopefully carried on. A funeral should express what the deceased valued in their life and help instill those values in others so that the dream may continue.
These selfish half ass plans to just have a party in my memory just don’t cut it today or any time in history. Opportunities to remember and heal takes thoughtful planning. That’s what Funeral Directors and Celebrants do! Cremation should allow for even more opportunity then burial, because it give us the freedom of more time to create what should be the most important event in your life. To take what mattered most to us to our grave without ever sharing is just a sad, sad shame. What’s even worst is, as a result of not having a real funeral plan, is the final disposition of your earthly remains are not being fulfilled. The ashes of many are ending up stowed away at home in “the closet”. How and why are the sacred earthly remains of our loved one’s ending up in such a non-flattering shrine.
It sounds simple “just scatter me”. But to make this request can often lead to these closet internments. The request to scatter me is apparently not enough. The survivors who want to do the “right thing” but are often unsure of exactly what to do with the cremated remains or what people usually refer to as “the ashes”. You choose scattering because it’s a very natural way to go back to the earth and continue the cycle of life. But when no one really knows the specifics it just might be put off so long that not doing becomes easier then not doing.
The lesson here is to just take some time and think about your legacy and how and where do you want things done. People that do participate in scattering have said they feel a huge sense of relief and that the scattering can conjure feelings of completing the natural cycle of life as they are giving the ashes back to nature.
Selecting a location to scatter is what should be an important life decision. For spiritual Christians the mountains, lake or golf course just seems to be sanctified then the sacred grounds of a cemetery. For these spiritual Christians there is now a way to choose scattering yet also be laid to rest on beautiful sacred grounds.
The Ash Scattering Society now offers a service called Holyland Ash Scattering in response to people’s desire to be scattered in worldwide locations of particular beauty and meaning. Their Holy Land Ash Scattering service, provides the ultimate location for scattering ashes. Their memorial scattering garden is in Israel along the Jesus trail, overlooking the beautiful Sea of Galilee, where Jesus once walked. It’s easy to ship the ashes to them and you even get a video of the complete scattering ceremony!
With new options like Holyland Ash Scattering it’s time to get many of those poor abandoned souls, out of the closet! and laid to rest. Spiritual Americans have begun to embrace this new option. For many the pilgrimage to the Holy Land has been a lifelong dream. Some do get to visit this very meaningful region and have a life changing experience. Now with the services of Holyland Ash Scattering anyone can rest eternal for all time for less than the cost of a plane ticket.
