Life in the Garden

Matters of Life and Death

Memorial Service Ideas

Protector of the Gold

griffin

Today a family called looking for an urn with the image of a griffin. I love the idea of this ancient symbol of protection on a cremation urn.

We’ve got a couple of griffins out in the garden. The legendary Griffin symbol is a fascinating creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. Variations of ancient lore say the griffin builds a nest, like an eagle (female?) and lays sapphires instead of eggs, and protects the gold. The feather of a griffin and the talon both are supposed to have medicinal properties so powerful that it can even restore sight to the blind!

The deceased collected griffins and even had a gryphon on his wedding ring. His ashes will be divided, and will be buried with a grandson and some of the family pets who passed earlier, including the ashes of the beloved Yorkie. The “baby”. The widow carries a bit of “baby Yorkie” in a small keepsake urn on her key chain.

At the memorial service the family incorporated griffin sculpture, statues, and relics among the family photo display.

griffin urn for ashes

Hillbilly Funeral Customs

st pats postcard

More death and burial folklore from famous hillbilly folklorist Vance Randolph:

Time Stops: When a death finally occurs, one of the bereaved neighbors rises immediately and stops the clock. Everybody knows that if the clock should happen to stop of itself while a corpse is lying in the house, another member of the family would die within a year, and it’s best not to take no chances.

Reflections: The next thing to do is cover every mirror in the house with white cloths, which are not removed until after the funeral. This is done out of consideration for those who may come in to view the body, for it one of them should glimpse his own reflection in the house of death, it is believed that he will never live to see another summer.

“New Fangled Customs”: In some houses, immediately after a death occurs, the chairs are all turned up so that nobody can sit in them, and people who come into the presence of the dead are forced to stand. Randolph could never find the source of this belief and was told by one old-timer that it is a new-fangled custom, brought into the country by some outlanders about 1880.

Dirty Laundry: When a hillman dies all his bedding and articles of clothing are immediately hung on a line outdoors. People coming far down the road see this and know that the patient is dead. In predicting a sick man’s demise, I have heard people say “Poor Jim’s britches will be a-hangin out most any day now!”

Neighborhood Cleanup: The hillfolk have a veritable mania for washing dead bodies; the moment a death occurs the neighbors strip the corpse and begin to scrub it vigorously. A man may be dirty all his life, and in his last illness his body and bedding may be so foul that one can hardly stay in the cabin, but he goes to his grave clean. All of the work connected with a death- washing and dressing the body, is done by friends and neighbors. Not one of the near relatives of the deceased will have any part in these doings, except in the direst necessity.

Today’s tip: Perfect your yodel.

Full Bird

vintage postcard

Most of the time, the calls we field are families in distress, and occasionally, like any business, you get the odd bird. The Colonial, for instance.

This gentleman insisted that I address him by his “first” name “The Colonial”, and he had questions.

I had answers.

Next, we moved to his favorite topic. HIZ SELF and his many great accomplishments in military service. Wow! If it was true, I might like to know more, so I asked for his full name. “Why? you gonna look me up?” He asked. “Sure.” I said, “Have you ever Googled yourself?”

“Uh, no.” he answered.

“Well. You must be CLASSIFIED,” I said, “there’s nothing here.” He responded that indeed, all of his work was TOP SECRET.

Agreed. Because, what I didn’t mention? The only information that came up under his name was sex offender info.

heritage flag and medal case

Inspiration

No time for diversions, but projects that have caught our eye of late:

mini fairy garden

This baby garden for small spaces. The artist used a cast-off wooden tray and does not recommend wood containers for YOUR fairy garden. It WILL ruin the furniture if you want a table top version. Note to self: Water plants.

In a desperate quest for something alive and green I bought two cat palms on clearance from you know where. They need a drink and some lovin.

Decorating the stump: My Stump, my stump, my ugly lovely rotten tree stump. It’s a Spring Ritual, the decorating of the stump. I’m ready to have it bored out. Dirtsister has been able to create some beauty there, but it will have to be reworked.

bird bath

Add a stone song bird obliesk. Hate that word btw. Obliesk. Can’t spell or say it.
And maybe some garden gnomes. And turtles. Love turtles and gnomes.
garden stone

Here’s another idea we like: Custom Tassles for personalization on glass and metal urns. Is it too foo-foo? Will have to think on.

tassle

And then while we are on foo-foo textiles, I love this look as a shroud.

anna nichole smith

And finally: Life Lesson #22 From Rosie the Chihuahua DAWG

dog

“Bless you, my child.”

Atomic Number 27 Cobalt Blue Funeral Urns

For centuries Cobalt compounds have been used to create a rich blue color to glass, glazes, and ceramics. Cobalt has been detected in Egyptian sculpture and Persian jewelry from the third millennium BC, in the ruins of Pompeii, and in China dating from the Tang and Ming dynasties.

Cobalt Glass Cremation Urns

Pure cobalt is not found in nature, but compounds of cobalt occur naturally in many forms. Small amounts of it are found in most rocks, soil, water, plants, and animals. Cobalt in small amounts is essential to many living organisms, including humans and is an element of atomic number 27.

Blue Marble Cremation Urn

Our Friendship and Truth memorial urn is actually the ancient stone Lapis Lazuli , the stone of friendship and truth. Egyptians loved the Lapis and would crush it into a fine dust to use for eyeshadow.

celtic knot cobalt keepsake urn

Our popular cobalt keepsake urns are available in different Celtic styles as well as butterfly design. But my all time personal favorite is this blown glass wave. It only holds a small amount of ashes, but is a sturdy stunning sculpture.

ocean wave cremation urn

If you love all shades of blue check out our page dedicated to the color of blue.