I know the lame joke about preferring the alternative to a funeral, especially when it is your own. I get that part of it. But I think what I don't like about either is the ostentatious display that seems inherent with most funerals and grave markers. Certainly I live in "Granite City" so granite here is like wood in a rainforest village. But as I wandered through a local cemetery this morning, I was overwhelmed by the excess of huge mausoleums as edifices to those who have passed away. If the average cost of a funeral is about $8,000, what did these ceremonies/markers cost? I am not sure that I just want to be buried in the backyard or propped up next to a tree somewhere or put on a melting ice floe, but I am hoping for considerable moderation from what I saw today.
That said, let me tell you what else I have figured out about funerals and cemeteries. They are more for the living than for those who have passed away. That lesson was reinforced today, as I saw hundreds of graves that were decorated by real acts of remembrance of loved ones. I am guessing that some need this tangible reminder of those who have left this physical world--just as they need a fancy funeral and massive marker to remind them of what is and has been lost.
I do have a more personal goal, though, and one that is probably a solid goal for everyone. Aim to be remembered and respected while you are alive, and you and those who love you won't worry about a gravestone being the only mark you leave on the world.
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