I had no idea there were so many options available. I've long been opposed to traditional burial methods and embalming, and I thought the only other option was cremation. I'm certain that in a few years we'll have even more options. The only issue I see now is that you may be leaving your loved ones with a legal problem, even if you did your homework prior to your death, because laws change. Not only do you not know how or when you'll die, you also don't know where you'll die.
Thank you for all the information. We live on a farm in Oregon. When my husband died we had him cremated and then buried his ashes under “his” tree when it was transplanted from where we bought it to the farm. I didn’t know how toxic cremation is when I made the decision, but feel good about buying the tree and putting his ashes under it. Now I see it out my window and watch it through the seasons.
I am disappointed as a Californian that my family can’t bury my cremains in the backyard of our family home! Hopefully by the time I go, the ice urn will be available. I love being on or in water (I swim and paddle as a member of an outrigger canoe club), so that would be a great way to float away from life.
Thank you for providing feedback people may not be aware of. It's interesting that you can scatter ashes almost anywhere in California, but can't bury them.
It seems like the patented ice urn would be a very popular option for coastal funeral parlors or mortuaries to offer, especially in California and Florida.
Very interesting information, thank you for this. Pre-planning is important and if one feels strongly enough, best to put into writing what you want along with a few alternatives in case laws (and technology) change by the time you pass away.
Some years ago I discovered Caitlin Doughty, who is a writer and "death acceptance advocate." I read her first book, "Smoke gets in your eyes," which was a fascinating book about one of her first jobs as a crematory operator. Not for the squeamish, but she wrote clearly about a topic most people avoid thinking about. She has also written a few other books on the topic, including one writtenfor children, and also has a YouTube channel (I've not read the newer books nor seen the YT).
I didn't Google her because I couldn't remember her name at first, so I had to look up my past book purchases from the *cough* dominant online seller that I generally avoid. (Tbf they have been investing millions to improve their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) ratings.)
Composting would be my option of choice. Unfortunately, a greedy Indiana representative at the State House kept that from being legal here (he was in the casket business). There are green burial options, however, and I was pleased to attend a green funeral for a family member who sadly passed during the pandemic. It was beautiful and my husband and I may pre-plan to rest nearby, as there are only a few cemeteries in the state that offer green burials.
I was hoping to find a way to recycle ALL of my body. I am signed up on my driver's license as an organ donor but am afraid that might not include ALL organs (including skin). Then that still leaves other parts of the body. I thought about asking some farmer to cut it up and use it as fertilizer (like they used fish ages ago) but then thought maybe the rest could simply be eaten (by humans or wildlife or whatever doesn't matter to me)? I just don't want anything wasted!
It sounds like composting might be a good alternative. All that is left are bones and those can be ground up and scattered. The bones dust enriches soil.
My Mother was an organ donor, but unfortunately died of sepsis making all of her organs (even skin and corneas) ineligible for donation. With any donor plan, it's a good idea to have a back up plan just in case the circumstances of death negate the possibility of donation.
I told my children that I wanted to be taxidermed into a chair position so they could sit on me when they missed me .... they didn't like that "too creepy" so now I want to be cremated and compressed into two diamonds one for each of my girls ! So far they are in agreement as long as I'm not made into jewelry so I guess I will be in a sculpture or something !! I'll keep looking !!
I had no idea there were so many options available. I've long been opposed to traditional burial methods and embalming, and I thought the only other option was cremation. I'm certain that in a few years we'll have even more options. The only issue I see now is that you may be leaving your loved ones with a legal problem, even if you did your homework prior to your death, because laws change. Not only do you not know how or when you'll die, you also don't know where you'll die.
Thank you for reading my piece. Yes, prior planning and research is key in any post-life decision, but critical if you want anything specialized.
Very informative - thanks!
Thank you for reading my latest piece for Team Takei.
Thank you for all the information. We live on a farm in Oregon. When my husband died we had him cremated and then buried his ashes under “his” tree when it was transplanted from where we bought it to the farm. I didn’t know how toxic cremation is when I made the decision, but feel good about buying the tree and putting his ashes under it. Now I see it out my window and watch it through the seasons.
Thank you for reading my piece and sharing your experience.
When my Mother walked on she was also traditionally cremated according to her wishes, but my Sisters and I are looking at more eco-friendly options.
Thank you for this information. There are many options I had never heard of.
Thank you. I also learned some new options when researching this piece and now another member of Team Takei is looking into the reef ball option.
I am disappointed as a Californian that my family can’t bury my cremains in the backyard of our family home! Hopefully by the time I go, the ice urn will be available. I love being on or in water (I swim and paddle as a member of an outrigger canoe club), so that would be a great way to float away from life.
Thank you for providing feedback people may not be aware of. It's interesting that you can scatter ashes almost anywhere in California, but can't bury them.
It seems like the patented ice urn would be a very popular option for coastal funeral parlors or mortuaries to offer, especially in California and Florida.
Very interesting information, thank you for this. Pre-planning is important and if one feels strongly enough, best to put into writing what you want along with a few alternatives in case laws (and technology) change by the time you pass away.
Some years ago I discovered Caitlin Doughty, who is a writer and "death acceptance advocate." I read her first book, "Smoke gets in your eyes," which was a fascinating book about one of her first jobs as a crematory operator. Not for the squeamish, but she wrote clearly about a topic most people avoid thinking about. She has also written a few other books on the topic, including one writtenfor children, and also has a YouTube channel (I've not read the newer books nor seen the YT).
Thank you for reading my piece and for sharing an additional resource, Caitlin Doughty.
She has a personal website, too: https://caitlindoughty.com/
Thanks, and I just discovered her professional website as well.
https://www.orderofthegooddeath.com/
I didn't Google her because I couldn't remember her name at first, so I had to look up my past book purchases from the *cough* dominant online seller that I generally avoid. (Tbf they have been investing millions to improve their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) ratings.)
Very useful information. Thank you.
Thank you for your kind words. Team Takei really hopes to use this platform to provide new information to our readers.
Composting would be my option of choice. Unfortunately, a greedy Indiana representative at the State House kept that from being legal here (he was in the casket business). There are green burial options, however, and I was pleased to attend a green funeral for a family member who sadly passed during the pandemic. It was beautiful and my husband and I may pre-plan to rest nearby, as there are only a few cemeteries in the state that offer green burials.
I was hoping to find a way to recycle ALL of my body. I am signed up on my driver's license as an organ donor but am afraid that might not include ALL organs (including skin). Then that still leaves other parts of the body. I thought about asking some farmer to cut it up and use it as fertilizer (like they used fish ages ago) but then thought maybe the rest could simply be eaten (by humans or wildlife or whatever doesn't matter to me)? I just don't want anything wasted!
It sounds like composting might be a good alternative. All that is left are bones and those can be ground up and scattered. The bones dust enriches soil.
My Mother was an organ donor, but unfortunately died of sepsis making all of her organs (even skin and corneas) ineligible for donation. With any donor plan, it's a good idea to have a back up plan just in case the circumstances of death negate the possibility of donation.
Thank you!
I told my children that I wanted to be taxidermed into a chair position so they could sit on me when they missed me .... they didn't like that "too creepy" so now I want to be cremated and compressed into two diamonds one for each of my girls ! So far they are in agreement as long as I'm not made into jewelry so I guess I will be in a sculpture or something !! I'll keep looking !!
Now I can’t get that image out of my head!
People taxidermy pets, but I don’t know about state or federal laws for human taxidermy.
Here at Team Takei, one of our members is a sci-fi and horror screenwriter and he said this is definitely going into one of his future scripts.