Thoughts for Lent
Posted by Richard Rawlinson “I’ve been to funerals where I was pretty sure the majority were atheists and they listened to the vicar say the deceased had gone to a better place and everyone’s toes curled. We can’t prove it’s not so but the chances that it is, are rather meagre. If […]
Thought for the day
A culture that keeps death out of sight and mind is one that is increasingly lost for words when comforting others in their grief. Instead of having that important conversation in the supermarket with the lady down the street who has lost her husband, we slip down the next aisle with the self-justifying thought that […]
Post mortem photography
Posted by Vale We had quite a debate recently when we published some recent post mortem photgraphs. They were respectful, intriguing and, some of them, quite lovely in their own way. But they made us – and some of you – uneasy. Did the photographer have permission to publish? Was it right to expose the […]
Go like a Pharaoh
Fred Guentert, 89, of Orlando, Florida, has spent years getting ready to go. In his workshop he has been building his coffin — and not just any old coffin, either. Fred’s is an Egyptian, Pharoah-style coffin, and he’s been crafting it since the 80s. He’s an Egypt nut, you see. Hand-painted red, black, gold and […]
Let’s make the case for funerals
Guest post by Rupert Callender, owner of The Green Funeral Company. Often this blog can trot nicely along with the usual suspects commenting dryly from the sidelines, a good natured conversation amongst friends. It’s easy to forget it has a wide, international readership, easy that is, until a seemingly innocuous post unleashes a Bay of […]
Thought for the day
In parts of Africa it is said that people experience two deaths: one when their body dies, and the other when the last person who knew them dies. Cemeteries are living testimony to that. Source — a nice piece about cemeteries
Can undertaking ever be a respectable commercial activity?
Posted by Charles Commentators on Mr Maiden’s letter to the Funeral Service Journal (here) deploring some coffin manufacturers’ willingness to sell their boxes direct to the public did not find in favour of Mr Maiden’s practice of burying some of his service charge in an excessively marked-up coffin. The latest score is 26-0. James Leedam […]
My Southbank Deathfest
Posted by Vale Some personal reflections on the Southbank Deathfest this weekend: Imagine a wire and steel footbridge over the Thames: brown water lapping, St Paul’s, pale in the wintry light, downstream. Drop down to buildings, a collection of concrete and glass halls that were modern once but which, in the way of those brave […]
Publishing event of the year!
The Natural Death Handbook, Fifth Edition A thoroughly updated and revised edition of the Natural Death Centre‘s celebrated handbook. Now presented alongside a new collection of essays on death, dying and funeral practices by doctors, historians, authors, poets, theologians and artists including Richard Barnett, David Jay Brown, Dr Sheila Cassidy, Charles Cowling, Bill Drummond, Stephen Grasso, […]
Quote of the day
A 90 year-old woman, told she was dying: “How could this happen to me? Just bad luck I guess.” Quoted here.
