Do I need a Cremation Casket?

In the not-too-distant future, you could be cremated wrapped in banana leaves as people look for more ways to lower the burial costs and make it greener. Because of the economic problems and no signs of quick relief, casket manufacturers are looking for new ways to produce a casket that is either burned during cremation or used for just a short amount of time before cremation of the body.

Families that didn't look at cremation in the past are now considering it because of its much lower cost. The option that costs the least amount for a family wanting to cremate their loved one is to use a cardboard box which is cremated along with the body. However, this means that you must have a memorial service or wait until you receive the cremated remains back to hold your celebration of their life. A lot of families are opting to just have a memorial service using items from their loved one's life to represent them.

Another option for your family is to rent a casket with a removable liner. This is more expensive that the first option but still cheaper than buying a casket. The liner is removed along with the body as they both head to the crematorium. The casket can then be rented to the next family for a funeral service. Some families don't want their loved one laying in a casket theat was previously used by another person.

Why can't you just use a wood casket? Well, you can but a solid wood casket still takes a long time to burn at added costs for the cremation. Hard woods look the best but soft woods burn the best. So, which do you select? Well, casket manufacturers are helping you out here. They are making a casket of cheaper compressed wood with nice looking hard wood veneer so the casket looks great and burns quickly.

Today, you have many more options to chose from when deciding to be cremated instead of having a traditional burial. The important part is to honor your loved one, celebrate their life, and let them go out in style. Read a poem and tell a story that reminds you of the joy you had sharing life with them. After all, it is their memory that is precious not the way we bury them.

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Spread My Ashes in a Memorial Garden

Two major reasons for selecting cremation over traditional burial begins with the expense but also includes traditional cemeteries filling up. Those same cemeteries are now finding space for cremated remains. Memorial gardens are not just for spreading your ashes but it is a quiet place for people to come and remember those loved ones they have lost. As space around urban areas have become more scarce, memorial gardens are taking over.

Unused space in the cemetery
The St. Peter's By-the-Sea cemetery near York, England has found use for a section of their cemetery that wasn't deep enough to allow traditional burial. They turned it into a memorial park for cremated remains. The names of the deceased on listed on a common stone while the remains are spread out onto the garden grounds.

In the family plot
While this isn't a traditional memorial garden, if you own a family plot, cemeteries are letting people include cremated remains interred there because there aren't any spaces left for traditional burials. The urn is buried at the foot of an existing grave within your plot. One man I know has interred the urn contained the cremated remains of his second wife with the casket of his first wife. He fully intends to rest with both of them by having his cremated remains buried there also. Check with the cemetery because not all permit this kind of interment.

Walk of remembrance
One church has turned a garden path into a walk of remembrance by place two memorials along the path. They are allowing ashes to be interred along side the path or spread over the flowers. A special memorial book will be kept by the church with the names of everyone there. This memorial walk has been fully dedicated by one of the church deacons.

So, if you want to find a place to have your ashes near to where you live or in your already full family cemetery, check with them. They may have some alternatives that you don't know about.

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Credit Crunch and Burial

The credit crunch is a problem for those looking to have a typical funeral or even a cremation done. A funeral home or crematorium is a business and they aren't a non profit organization. In the past, a funeral home would do a funeral for the low income person and wait to get reimbursed from the government. This was expecially true in the UK. In the UK. it could take up to 2 months for the government agency to pay the bill. In the meantime, the expenses of the funeral or cremation were funded by a business loan. The loan costs were part of the price.

Another way to fund a funeral or cremation would be to charge the amount on your credit card. Burial costs are often a shock to the surviving members of the family and funeral homes have been known to hard sell many extravagant items to the grieving families. It left them with a large bill but they could pay it out over time. If you have been following the news, you will see that credit card companies have been decreasing the limits on your cars as fast as they can. If you are someone that doesn't look at all details of your bill, you could be shocked at your limit today. With no room left to charge anything, there is no room for the unexpected funeral expenses.

Both of the above scenarios are a direct result of the world wide credit crunch. While this is affecting those that haven't planned in advance, sometimes planning in advance is a bad idea. It is a bad idea if you buy a burial insurance policy. Pre-need or pre-paid funeral plans are being raided by the companies. The company, like National Prearranged Services, is going out of business leaving people with no money for burial. The Neptune Society was caught not putting the required amount of the plan in escrow. As we discussed here before, buy a standard insurance policy and stay away from the burial plan ones.

Of course, you can save a lot of money by doing a green burial. In these days and times where money is scarce, don't bury your cash in a standard funeral. Take the low cost green burial way with a cremation and scattering your ashes.

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Green Burial: My Favorite Spot

Photo courtesy of publicdomainpictures.net

A lot of people have come across a favorite place where they go to let their mind relax and their soul regenerate. Sometimes, this is their own garden and sometimes this place is located several thousand miles away. Wherever you place is located, consider having your ashes spread there permanently. If it is a place you own, the easier it will be for your spirit whisperer to spread your ashes there. There is just something sacred about your secret place to relax your soul and it isn't surprising that it is often picked as the final resting place for someone's ashes.

Spirit Whisperer

It goes without saying that a quiet spot will not draw a crowd when you go to spread the ashes. So unless your quiet spot is on top of Mt. Everest, it should be an easy spot to do the spreading. Once again, we caution you to select someone that can accomplish what you wish. Consider the spot, if it is your backyard garden, you can select your spouse. If it takes a long hike, consider a professional or someone in the family capable of doing it at that time. Don't select your brother who might be 80 like you when he has to do this. Be respectful of anyone else who uses that spot and spread the ashes so as not to spoil the spot for anyone else.

Wake

The wake is usually going to be held some where other than your secret space. There is a reason why this place is quiet and a good place to relax. If you plan on inviting a small group or only expect a small group to show up then consider a simple wake. Have the group silently walk to your quiet place and offer a toast with out words. Doing this at sunset with a simple goodbye as they leave you to nourish new life while rejoining the living earth.

Memorial

If their favorite quiet spot was their garden, use their gardening tools and gloves as a fitting memorial. A fishing spot can be marked with their favorite lure at the bottom of the lake. Be sure and put the hook in something that won't end up in a fish. Use the online memorial sites or buy a tree for a living memorial. Please leave the site as your found it: unspoiled for the next person.

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Green Burial: The cycle of life

Water Cycle

I am sure that environmentalist and clean water advocates will not be happy with this particular article. This can also be against the law so check your local ordinances. So do you remember in elementary school when you first learned about the water cycle? Just in case, like me, it has been a long time since elementary school for you, this cycle is depicted in the above picture. Can you imagine a drop of water starting in a mountain stream and making it all the way down to the ocean. Particles of stuff are suspended in the water and carried for who knows how far downstream. So if you really want to spread those ashes, here is what you do.

Have your spirit whisperer take your ashes and mix them with water. They must then hike up to the beginning of a mountain stream and pour the contents in the water. A remote location with no one around seems like a very good idea. In case you aren't aware, the Hindus have run into problems trying to place their ashes in the river. Hindu custom dictates that a father’s eldest son should light his funeral pyre and that his ashes should be scattered in a river or the sea within 13 days. They traditionally place the ashes in the river along with gifts to the deceased. If you travel to India, it perfectly acceptable to do this along with the rest of the country. In other places, you are on your own.

If you decide to spread your ashes this way, donate some money or your time to cleaning up a river. After all, you don't want to end up in a river full of garbage and nasty chemicals. Otherwise, you might as well flush yourself down the sewer. Pick a clear mountain stream and perhaps, as time passes, a small part of you will make its way slowly to the nearest ocean. All along the way, the water will be depositing small parts of your ashes as they get trapped or sink to the bottom of the stream. A very good way to go out in style and return to greening the earth.

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Green Burial: Thinking ahead

If you don’t decide in advance what kind of burial you want and make arrangements for their costs before you die, it will leave your loved ones stranded and forced to make last minute expensive decisions during their grief. This is very much like trying to buy an airline ticket the day you fly. You will be forced to pay full price with no room for negotiation. Think of all the things that have to be purchased for a traditional funeral.

1. Embalming
2. Viewing
3. Flowers
4. Burial Plot
5. Casket
6. Service
7. Grave opening and closing
8. Basic service fees for the funeral home
9. Grave marker
10. Funeral procession
11. Any extras.

It does add up fast, starts around $6000 and goes up from there to well over $10000 average. So you can see why it is important to write down your wishes long before you die. Have the conversation with your loved ones about what you would like to do. Here is what the FTC says about funeral costs.

The PyreFyre plan is much more streamlined and costs less.

1. Cremation
2. Relatives gather for a wake
3. Spirit whisperer spread ashes
4. Create Memorial

Cremation costs start at $600, which is much less than the cost of buying a casket. The wake can be a simple one with everyone bringing potluck if you desire. You can also spend $15-$25 a person to have it catered. The room will be extra but can be had for free at your church or if held at a public place. If a relative spreads your ashes then it can be done at a nominal cost just for transportation to your final resting place. Finally, the memorial can be created on line for no cost. A big advantage to cremation is the elimination of any hurry to complete the rest of the 3 steps. They can be planned and accomplished when they cost less and it allows for getting everyone there. Do it with creativity and inexpensively so your loved ones can concentrate on you not how will they ever pay for it all. Everyone can go out in style.

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Green Cemetery Investment

Monterey: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

If you want to preserve the land and give back to the earth, here is your recipe. It will take some work on your part but if you are the member of a group make it a group activity. In the end you and your friends get a nice green place to spread your ashes or have your ashes interred if you like.

Step one: Locate a piece of land to preserve. Someone in your group may already have a parcel they want to maintain in a natural state that really can’t be used or developed anyway. Perhaps they see the need for more land to stay wooded to help with the environment. Check zoning laws. You can’t just select some land in a regular subdivision.

Step two: Study all laws regarding cemeteries in your state. Your state representative’s office can help with the details. If all you want to do is spread your ashes or bury them in an urn, the rules will be a lot less strict. There are “for profit” and nonprofit cemeteries. The best to set up would be the nonprofit one. So you will need a nonprofit company to actually own the land. A church would do nicely for this.

Step three: Setup a conservation easement. As explained in Wikipedia, a conservation easement is an encumbrance — sometimes including a transfer of usage rights (easement) — which creates a legally enforceable land preservation agreement between a landowner and a government agency (municipality, county, state, federal) or a qualified land protection organization (often called a "land trust"), for the purposes of conservation.

Step four: Find a land trust to take ownership of the easement. Once again, according to Wikipedia, a land trust is an agreement whereby one party (the trustee) agrees to hold ownership of a piece of real property for the benefit of another party (the beneficiary). Land trusts are used by nonprofit organizations to hold conservation easements, by corporations and investment groups to compile large tracts of land, and by individuals to keep their real estate ownership private, avoid probate and provide several other benefits. See here for books to help out.

Give it a try. I believe this is a much better way to spend your money than investing in those burial plots in a cemetery that never seem to be there when you are ready to use them.

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Last Years, Last Days, Last Thoughts, Last Plays

As you get older, you watch the lives end for people you love and people who have been a part of your life as long as you can remember. So goes the process for each of us as deaths slips quietly closer and closer to our door. We are just too busy living to notice until we wake up one day and start counting the years left instead of the years we have lived on this Earth. Our thoughts turn to what may be after death and a shadow of doubt blankets our vision of the afterlife. Finally, we can see a world that does not include us ever again. We will depart and leave it to those left behind. That is the one true thing we can all count on to happen in the end.

How we handle the next few years will say a lot about our true beliefs and personality. Will you go quietly into the night expecting to wake up in a Heavenly place or will you go kicking and screaming like a child afraid of what lies in the dark? It is our belief here at PyreFyre that you feel a closer affinity with the afterlife, as you get closer to your departure date. Although none of us know that day, our soul senses something coming on the horizon with our earthly attachment seeming a lot weaker. It feels almost like you could have an out of body experience at anytime. Your soul begins to understand that it is separate from the body.

In the end, we want to leave a legacy, feel comfortable about what happens next, and go out in style. Here at PyreFyre, we just concern ourselves with going out in style. We do understand that to go out in style you must certainly feel comfortable with what happens next. While it is certainly appropriate to feel apprehension about the afterlife, those that feel like going out kicking and screaming should find another site to express that fear. So think about those last plays. Have some fun, enjoy the things you meant to do years ago, and get set to experience wonders not seen before.

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Deciding a green burial for someone else

Arizona

If you end up with someone’s ashes and they haven’t said what to do with them, what comes next? You don’t expect something like this to happen but the truth is that it does happen. Do they live forever on your mantle? If you get tired of them in your house, do you pass them around like a Xmas fruitcake each year? How about just putting uncle Harry in the backyard garden.

Sometimes a friend or relative will decide to be cremated when they die but only express vague references to a good view, somewhere nice, or tell you to decide what is appropriate. So if this happens to you, where do you turn? How do you decide what is right and respectful of their wishes? Are you ready to take on this task or do you put it off until tomorrow?

Well, here at Pyrefyre, we have some suggestions to help you decide where their final resting spot will be. You have a lot of options in what you decide to do. Some are virtually cost free while others will be a sizeable expense. So task number one is to look at your budget. The least expensive scattering is done at public places where it doesn’t cost except the transportation to get there. You can even make a vacation out of it. If you plan on flying to the destination, have a look at our information on problems you might incur due to security restriction.

Task number two is to determine some aspects of your friend or relative’s life that you think would help you decide which place to put them. Were they an avid outdoor person, fisherman, hiker, loved a particular sports team, pilot, loved animals, etc. You get the idea. Try to form a image of them that represents their passion in life. You can then check this against the list of suggested scatterings we have here. If you can’t figure out a place you would like to scatter them. You can look into a more expensive option which is to place their urn in a memorial park or green burial site.

Give it some thought and pick a nice ending for them that allows them to go out in style.

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Reef: A green burial

For scuba divers and other who just generally love the ocean, you can elect to have your ashes interred in a reef. The living memorial reef helps out the marine environment and conserves land that cemeteries would take up. Some reef burial companies are quite expensive so if you are a scuba diver, you can take the urn down yourself. A memorial reef urn mixed the ashes with concrete in the form of a habitat for underwater creatures. This creates a living reef over time once placed in the ocean. You must purchase the urn first and then have it placed in the ocean or do it yourself. Just remember that putting anything in the ocean must meet all local, state, and federal regulations.

Some companies that maintain reefs are Eternal reefs, Great Burial Reef, and Neptune Memorial.

Spirit Whisperer

It is a good idea to pick someone who really likes the water. If you are a scuba diver, plan on going down with the ashes to be placed at the reef. Otherwise, you can contract with a company that will take the remains down for you. You will have to see that the remains get there so they can be mixed with the concrete or placed in the urn that will be located at the reef. Reef companies do not perform the cremation so this needs to be handled separately. A temporary urn can be used at the wake until the permanent one is finished.

Wake

The wake can be held on a boat at sea or perhaps at the beach. As the wake comes to an end, the urn containing the ashes can depart on the boat for their final resting place. Consider going out to see the ashes placed at the site and then return for an evening beach memorial gathering. As the sun goes down on another day, toast the departed soul and wish them a safe journey to their next destination. Any type of marine theme for the wake along with some drinkable spirits like a good rum seem appropriate for the occasion.

Memorial

This is one type of interment where you get a built in memorial that will be there for years. Companies that build the reefs will give the coordinates of your final resting place along with a video of the spot. Your relatives may visit at anytime if he or she is a scuba diver.

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Scattering ashes by airplane

Waves: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

If you plan on scattering ashes by your own airplane, or by using a pilot friend to take you up, there is something you need to consider. Companies that perform this service report that most ashes fly back inside the airplane or coat the outside of it. They have built systems to guarantee dispersal. So just be aware that it isn’t as easy to spread ashes from an airplane as you think. Trips to scatter with no one attending are $500 or less for reasonable distances.

This method of scattering allows you to decide where you want your ashes to be dispersed also. A flight can be scheduled over some of the prettiest terrain on this planet. California companies will take you out over the ocean or back over the mountains. Select the spot you wish to be scattered and then look for a company in that area. They will know the local regulations for scattering your ashes. You can have the scattering attended by a few friends or relatives if you desire.

Spirit Whisperer

Try and select a nice day either near sunrise or sunset. This will make the pictures and the setting more appropriate for the send off. If you will be the only one there to scatter the ashes, take your mp3 player with headphones for some mood setting music. As a Spirit Whisperer, you should write down your thoughts as the ashes are scattered to the winds. Relatives and friends would want to know how the end of a life well lived was punctuated. Pictures, written thoughts, and a GPS mark of the spot on a chart. A suggestion would be to write down a step by step of everything you did to scatter the remains.

Wake

In the past, airplane dispersal of cremated remains was limited to pilots mostly. So you would expect the wake to be an aviation theme. As more people are opting for this kind of scattering, the wake should reflect their life. More wakes should be held outdoors in a park or forest. If your spirit whisperer is going to take a movie while the ashes are scattered, then think about having the wake after the scattering. The wake could then end with movie showing the final resting place of a life well lived.

Memorials:

Here at PyreFyre, our number one memorial suggestion is to plant a tree or other green living memorial. If you are a part of a group that has several members wanting a green burial, consider building a memorial forest or park just for scattering. Online memorials, electronic memorials, or art memorials are always good ideas.See our memorial page for links.

I really don't believe it is appropriate to offer a reward to kids based upon
something their parents have to do. Whether or not their parents sign your form is certainly out of their control. It also puts the kid in a bad position between the parent and the teacher just because they want a reward like the rest of the kids. You should really rethink this plan.

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Scattering at Sea

Pt Reyes: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

This has always been a popular way to scatter ones ashes and many companies exist to help you do just that. When Ghandi died, he wanted a traditional Hindu burial but he was scattered around the country in urns so your relatives don’t always follow your wishes. However, this may be an extreme case because there were political implications with his burial. One set of his ashes were recently scattered at sea by his family. If this is the way you select, you can readily find a company to scatter your ashes in any body of water on earth. All you have to do is Google “ashes at sea”. Off the Hawaiian Islands, in the south pacific, near Antarctica, or in the Caribbean are all good places to be scattered at sea.

Spirit whisperer

Sunrise or sunset makes an excellent time to scatter the ashes. Stop the boat and let it drift with the wind. Mind the wind and pick the leeward side so the ashes will blow out over the water. If you would like, mix water with the ashes so you can pour them into the water from the urn. A very nice way to spread the ashes is to place a wreathe of flowers in the water and then pour the ashes. The wreathe of flowers will give a nice focal point for the members of your family. Individual flowers can be dropped overboard while the boat drifts away from the ashes. You can also find a green floatable urn that is made from paper-mache. It will float for a few minutes and then sink. Someone should take a video or a series of pictures so don’t forget the camera. The spirit whisperer should send the departed soul on their way with a reading of something about the sea.

Wake

The wake can be as varied as the reason for the love of the sea. For the fisherman, a scheduled fishing charter and one last fishing trip. For the sailing enthusiast, a nice breeze and a sunset with all aboard. And for those who wish to stay on the beach, an evening clambake followed by guests relating their personal experiences with the sea. Bring along your favorite beverage for a toast to the celebration of a life lived well. Have your guests take some time and listen to the symphony of sounds from the sea so they will forever associate those sounds with your memory.

“Cast thy nets and hooks to claim the seas’ bountiful harvest as the ashes of my life shall drift forever upon the open sea. I pray God shall cast his net and catch my soul adding it to the bountiful harvest of Heaven.”

Memorial

Since you will not be able to place a memorial in the Sea, a map with the location of your ashes can be put in a frame. Of course, your ashes will not remain where they are scattered and your relatives cannot come back to visit you. All they have to do is get to the sea wherever it touches the coast for you will be spread where the sea is present. If you select one of the new electronic picture frames, take many digital pictures and make a slide show of the area. Online memorials with poems of the sea, a few pictures of fishing trips, or just posting great ocean vistas would be a fitting memorial to the one that has passed on to a better place.

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Memorial Gardens

In the past, churches have been a place to find the traditional cemetery. Now, we are entering a time of green funerals, green cemeteries, and just green burial. These eco-funerals are changing how people decide to handle their earthly remains after death. So today, you find churches adding memorial gardens for spreading of ashes and the interment of urns. These urns may be biodegradable urns or metal urns. This article shows how a couple; Steve and Jan Cornwell, worked to add a memorial garden to St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Boulder. The church expects to add a columbarium later.

Get together with the other members of your church who are interested in green burials and who would like to have their ashes spread there on the church property. The work in building the garden is a good summer project for those willing to give of their time. The church can collect a donation from each member in exchange for an engraved brick, bench or other remembrance items in the garden. Members can buy trees or other plants they can reserve to have their ashes buried beneath when the time is ready for them. Have the pastor bless the garden and the members are all set for a final resting place near their church family

There are many possibilities for a memorial garden design. A wall containing a Bible verse with a stone ring around it is a perfect place to spread your ashes. The memorial garden can also double as a prayer garden. If this appeals to you, start a formal discussion with your church elders. We are sure you will come up with a really great place to memorialize the members of your congregation.

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National Parks

Yosemite: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

President Ulysses S. Grant established the first National Park, Yellowstone, on March l, l872. Now, you can find a National Park in every state except Delaware. There are 391 different areas and 84 million acres. A plethora of places to spread your ashes so surely you can find one to your liking. In fact, if you are like me, there are so many beautiful places in the parks; it is hard to decide on just one.

My favorite parks are Glacier National Park, Denali National Park & Preserve, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Haleakala National Park.

Spirit Whisperer

As far as I understand it. You may spread your ashes in a national park as long as you aren’t doing it for money, e.g. a business, which has to be registered, and you are discreet. You can’t do it in developed areas like a campground but feel free to hike into the back country and spread them. You will need to get a back country pass from the ranger’s office if you plan on being out over night. Check the weather conditions before you start out. It is important that you know the area, take a GPS and map, and read how to respect the back country. People get lost in National Parks every year.

Wake

The wake for someone looking to have his or her ashes spread in a national park can go one of many different directions. If you really love the park system, they always need volunteers to help with upkeep. Rent one of the many fine rooms at one of the parks and request that your guests give some of their time volunteering. A hike to look at some of the park’s great scenery will certainly cause your guests to think about life. A simple camping trip with an evening prayer around a campfire would be a memorable experience for your wake. Outdoors beneath the stars, while listening to the sounds of the night, will always invoke the mind to contemplate life and death.

Memorial

Since you will not be able to place a memorial in the national park, a map with the location or locations of your ashes can be put in a frame. Take a picture of the view from the spot you will have your ashes spread and it can be added to the frame. If you select one of the new electronic picture frames, take many digital pictures and make a slide show of the area. With those pictures and the GPS coordinates; your friends and relatives who want to visit your final resting spot will have no problem finding you.

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The road less traveled for a green burial

Outhouse: Courtesy of pdhoto.org

Spreading your ashes after cremation occurs in a lot of different countries. So if you decide to have your ashes spread outside the US, it is important to be aware of local customs and laws. In Sweden, people are spreading their ashes in the mountains. This is distasteful to the local Reindeer herders who have to walk over that area. To them it is like walking over a grave in a cemetery. So they are seeking a change to the laws. Even if the law says you can spread your ashes somewhere, it is still your responsibility not to tread on the sensitivities of the people who have to live there.

Be courteous to others and select your final resting spot well. Some places you find along the way are inappropriate for spreading ashes. One example is shown in the picture. If you are a Spirit Whisperer, the “path less traveled” is the one to select. Try and get away from any marked area and use the GPS to mark the spot for relatives. It will take a little extra effort but is within the confines of showing respect for not only the deceased but for the living also.

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Green Burial of Ashes

Sequoias: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

For those who love trees, check out the Eco Eternity Forest website for an alternative green burial concept. They will let you lease a tree of your own for $4500 or if that is too expensive you may be placed by the community tree for $500. The forest has been blessed and they currently have two here in the United States.
You may use their facilities to have your wake or simply have a quiet service at the tree. If you select their family tree you may even include your pet ashes with the family. They have a family reunion tree, friendship tree, and community tree. Check it out.

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Scattering

Glacier Park: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

Where shall you rest for all eternity? Well, at least where will you rejoin the food chain and do your part for a green earth by having a green funeral and green burial. Don't settle for going 6 feet under with the same old expensive funeral. Let's go out in style. This decision can be quite straightforward and simple for some and agonizingly slow for others. Some of us fall in love with a spot that we visited on vacation while others select a spot they spent many an hour visiting when they were alive. Still others pick one spot and as time passes they discover a completely new spot. The important thing is that you write down the spot that you select.

On this blog we will be discussing many different places including green cemeteries and memorial parks. Along with a discussion of why someone would like that space for their scattering. Below is a list of places you may want to consider.

1. National Parks
   Space
   Sea
   Volcano
   Sports Stadium
   Disney World
   African Game Preserve
   Balloon
   Mardi Gras
   Your favorite spot to be alone
   Fireworks
   Mountain Top
   Garden
   Grave Top
   Airplane/Helicopter
   Golf course
   Rose garden
   Hiking Trail
   On the Moon
   Wildflower Meadow
   Waterfall
   Snow bank
   Horse Track
   NASCAR Track
   South Pacific Island
   Skiing
   Hurricane
   North Pole
   Reef
   Rain Forest

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Planning

Jasper Park: Courtesy of pdphoto.org

Here are a few of the things you need to consider when selecting the PyreFyre way of commemorating your passing into the afterlife. Have someone perform the cremation, plan the memorial gathering, and pick a place to scatter those ashes. The bottom line is to take away the somber mood and let everyone remember the good times they shared with you. So be creative and set up a memorable gathering to toast your life or the life of your loved one. Remember, the memorial service and celebration of the life is often before the cremation if a person donates their body to science. In this case, our recommendation is that an alternate focal point be at the gathering of your friends and family. This will often be pictures or crafts and art made by you or your loved one. Select anything that will remind your family and friends of your life
Preplanning:

The purpose of preplanning is to get your wishes documented so your next of kin will not have to worry so much about the details. Please don’t come back and haunt your kin if the arrangements are not followed to the letter. You can choose to write them on paper, use a word processor, or buy a kit. There are also books available at your local bookstore for planning.
Select your advocate:

This may be your spouse, children, or a trusted friend. It could be the executor of your will. It is important that you take your written request and go over it with them so they understand all your wishes and are willing to carry them out.
Pick the crematorium:

You may or may not want to pick your crematorium. Donate your body to science and you can let them take care of this part. If you pick a crematorium, you will make it a lot easier on your surviving family. Just remember to go check it out, ask some people who are satisfied with their service, and always pick a reputable one. You should always select the one that gives the best value for your money not the cheapest.
Plan your wake

Pick the place to have your celebration or wake. The celebration is of your life and all its memories so your family and friends can console your closest love ones. Food and drink should be provided along with a nice meeting place. You can pick an indoor place, a resort, or something outside in nature. A good idea is to pick a spot that people associate with your life.
Your final resting place.

Think back through all the great places you have traveled and those that made you the happiest. Let your family know while you are still alive why you selected to have your ashes scattered at this place. The sky and space is the limit with where to scatter your ashes. Please check out the laws and stay away from private property without permission. Generally you can go to any forest or national park and spread them as a private citizen. It is best to keep it all low key so you don’t offend anyone.

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About Pyrefyre

I started this blog to highlight the fact that by 2010 we should see 1/3 of the people in the US select cremation. Some will still prefer internment and others will end up in someone’s home. In this blog, we are looking for green ways to spread those ashes in our favorite place here on the earth. In addition to spreading the ashes, we want to see more of you celebrate the life of the deceased and not have such a somber time. It is time to see that person in their best light and not made up and stuffed in a box.

It is important that you leave your family instructions on how you would like them to handle your body and service after death. There are books available where you can just fill in the details. Don’t wait until tomorrow because you just never know when the grim reaper will arrive. There are a few details that need to be decided besides the actual cremation. We will discuss them to help you decide on your personal plan.

We will be looking for the most creative ways to honor the dead in new green burials. Ways that touch a memory within our life and convince us that this is the way we want to go into the next realm. Let us not forget that the celebration of our life is for the ones we leave behind. Select something that helps them remember what your life was really all about. Green funerals and memorial parks or select a part of God’s country to have your ashes scattered. Don’t settle for going 6 feet under with the same old expensive funeral. Save money, save space, and save the planet. Punctuate your life will a big exclamation point. Go out in style!

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