Healing Touches: Planning a Memorial or Funeral

Letters of memories, love, and connection.
(Credit: Galleryhip.com)

1) Celebrate Color
The traditional funeral color scheme may be black on black (maybe grey), but your loved one experienced a unique and vibrant life – so why not bring some color into their service? Why not plan a memorial dinner like our friends at Death Over Dinner? The right shade can echo a precious memory or simply evoke the personality of the loved one.

2) Celebrate Memories
It can be easy to feel alone in the stages of grief. Create a special box for visitors to place comforting, anonymous letters filled with thoughts about your loved one. At the end of the service, hand out the letters at random to create a unique parting gift: a memory that can now be shared.

Credit: Crosswalk.com

3) Celebrate “Full Circle”
Place a small packet of seeds under the chair of every attendee to take home after the memorial or funeral service. The seeds could be for anything that speak to the individuality of your loved one’s life, be it their favorite flower, tree, or season. The point is that your guests leave with a reminder that from death comes life, and through planting their seeds, they bring new vitality to the memory of a loved one.

What are some the elements of your funeral or memorial planning checklist? We look forward to your comments below.

Related SevenPonds Articles:

• Flower Power: Oils for Loss and the Stages of Grief
• Understand the “Environmental and Social Imapact of Flowers” during a memorial or funeral ceremony.
• What is the Art of the Dying? Fabric and thread artist Deidre Scherer captures the journey of the dying process. Check out our interview with her.