One of our customers called at 6 AM this morning, before business hours in fact. We don’t usually answer the phone at that hour, but I had just sat down at my desk with a cup of coffee. It’s tax time and this particular client is also trying to settle an estate. She needed a sales receipt from a transaction when she bought a turtle urn for her sister back in October.
We chatted while the computer woke up and I could verify the purchase. I asked her what they did with her sister’s urn, “Oh, it’s so beautiful,” she told me. “I’ve got it in a lighted display case at my house. I wish you could have seen what we did at her memorial, we used shells and flowers, it looked so good. ” I remembered this customer because not only did she buy one of my favorites, the turtle, she also works for for the Department of Justice.
Her sister’s estate is complicated because not only is Maryland probate involved, but there’s property in Virginia that has to be handled. Her sister’s illness was so sudden that there was no time to discuss her affairs and handling the estate has become a full time job in addition to the one she already has.
Stories like this make me proud that we are able to assist families and help them create the perfect memorial to honor their dear ones. We had another customer who bought a bronze cremation urn for her husband when he died while on vacation in Idaho. His children, who are grown, chose the turtle urn because they felt the qualities of patience, perseverance, and strength that were the personality traits of their father that were symbolized by this ancient creature.
Some Eastern cultures believe that the turtle shell is the symbol of heaven and earth united. The top of the turtle is heaven and the square on the bottom of the shell is earth. American Indians saw the turtle as the image of land and water.
The bronze sculpture that our artists create here in the USA is quality art for someone who wants not only a premium memorial, but a decorative presentation in the home. If smaller scale tribute is more to your liking, there’s always jewelry like the turtle urn pendant that can be worn on a chain or as a charm on a bracelet.
The days are snowy and cold now, but we anxiously await the warming of the season and days of dodging turtles on the road as they start their slow journey in the spring.
