By Jane Hillhouse
As I sat and watched the remarkable movie, Lincoln, the opening scene brought back to me so vividly, how the modern day funeral home was born.
Prior to that horrendous war, families took care of their own when they died. No embalming or entombing in concrete. Instead, friends and family made their own caskets, and were buried in a family plot.
This tradition is having a resurgence in several countries in Europe, Australia and finally in the United States. Here it is slowly becoming a real option once again, to care for the dead in their own home and to take their body to a natural burial site for interment. Of course there are still so many taboos. So many people still refer to the dead as ?passed?. This is such an extraordinary avoidance of death. Why not say ?died?.
England, my native country, is surging ahead with natural burial. They now have over 250 natural burial sites and have an excellent system for monitoring these sites. Questionnaires are supplied to the families, for completion after the burials which have to be submitted to the Association of Natural Burial Grounds founded by the Natural Death Centre, and if irregularities are uncovered, action may be taken by the county authorities.
No embalmed body is permitted in a natural burial preserve, and only natural caskets made from sustainably raised plants such as banana, sea grass, bamboo, willow or pine. Shrouds are a perfect solution. One of the benefits of this practice is the inclusion of the family in all the rituals surrounding the death. An example of that can be witnessed here in America in a few natural burial sites, and in particular Steelmantown in New Jersey. This preserve dates back to 1700s. Here, owner, Ed Bixby allows the family to organize the interment themselves. He will prepare the grave site, selected by the family. There will be a beautiful old wagon ready at the gate on which the family places the deceased, and which they can pull to the side of the grave. Assistance is always there if the family needs some. The interment is orchestrated by the family and they usually lower their loved one into the grave on straps supplied by Ed. It?s a wonderful experience for the loved ones to be so involved in saying goodbye. There is a beautiful chapel there too for any celebration a family chooses. There are no divisions by faith in this natural burial preserve. People must be laid to rest, as hopefully they lived.
Currently there are approximately 42 natural burial grounds in the States. Many are hybrids; sections of an existing modern day cemetery.
For those of us who are trying to protect the environment and the wild life with whom we share this fragile planet, it comes as a huge shock when we discover the extreme waste involved in a modern day burial. Who would have thought we bury a Golden Gate Bridge every year in our cemeteries, and a two lane concrete highway stretching from Detroit to New York. In addition, 30 million board feet of precious hardwood.
Instead, a place to bury our dead can also be a preservation of wildlife and open space.? Not with gallons of pesticides and water, to keep the grass green and weed free. We have no need for extravagant entombment. Dust to dust more and more people are saying. In a natural burial preserve, graves are usually marketed by a simple flat, an indigenous stone engraved with the person?s name. Technology have allowed to us a global positioning system (GPS) to locate the graves. I believe Steelmantown Preserve isn?t even using that modern invention! Another option is to plant a tree to mark your loved one?s resting place. I recently heard a wonderful story and saw a photograph of the first natural burial site in England, where the deceased were buried in a circle, heads to the center, and a tree above their heads. What a fantastic idea. Then after a year or two another person can be buried in the same circle in between the first graves.
Cremation is on the rise all across America. Mostly due to the lower cost involved. However, if a person is eager to be environmentally sensitive with their final footprint, their choice, where possible, should be a natural preserve or hybrid cemetery. The amount of energy used for cremation is one big concern. The other unfortunate problem is the mercury found in our teeth which is released into the atmosphere when cremation takes place. The average crematorium releases 25 to 50 pounds annually. This will return to the earth, rivers and lakes and can cause serious pollution in fish and wildlife. There is a new law in England which requires retorts to purchase a new scrubber which is designed to capture mercury. Fortunately mercury is used less and less in fillings these days, so we are hopeful this problem will dissipate.
Another rising interest amongst environmentalists is the preference to take care of their loved ones when they die as was done before the civil war. Families are permitted in most states to have a celebration in their own home, preparing their loved one themselves and transporting the body to the cemetery in their own vehicle. People who have experienced these end of life celebrations express a great feeling of involvement and say how much it helps the grieving process to be able to participate in these rituals.
I?ve recently been in contact with a funeral director who is starting to have body preparations without embalming, which will be welcomed by many ?green? people. There are a few around the country already practicing this method and we are thrilled that others are following suit. All we need now are lots more natural burial sites, such as farms not being farmed, and natural preserves which have conversation orders which would protect any graves in perpetuity. Natural burials are as much about protecting open space as reducing the carbon footprint. As the famous naturalist Aldo Leopold wrote:
?Dust into dust in a desiccated version of the Round River concept? A rock decays and forms soil. In the soil grows an oak, which bears an acorn, which feeds a squirrel, which feeds an Indian, who ultimately lays his him down to his last sleep in the great tomb of man ?to grow another oak.??FB
Jane Hillhouse founded Final Footprint ten years ago under the name of Colorful Coffins. In 2008 she started distributing Ecoffins caskets throughout the United States. In 2010 she created her own line through a manufacturer in Indonesia. Her caskets will be seen in an episode of Bones in the new year. She is a member of Green America. Jane can be reached at? 650-726-5255 or by email at jane@finalfootprint.com.
Source: http://www.funeralbusinessadvisor.com/?p=6936
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