Last May I posted about this gift, the four foot high concrete Celtic Cross, given to me for my birthday from my dear friend Jay. We've enjoyed passing by it everyday as we come up the path to the Looney Bin, but now it's time to get serious about it's purpose.
One of our dreams here, in addition to building a milk house, a real barn and a greenhouse, is to construct our own family cemetery. Both Keith and I are opposed to the grand waste of money associated with the average funeral which, here in the US, runs between $7000-$10,000. This includes the wake, the funeral, all burial expenses and the headstone. The subsequent "Grief Buffet"costs extra.
So, why are we doing this?
Well, for us, a traditional funeral is financially impossible as well as environmentally appalling. We hate the idea of lying for eternity in an embalmed state, secured in a metal box within a concrete vault. Not that we'd know the difference once we're dead, but we're alive right now and any money left from the sale of our property, we want our children to have, not a funeral home. Furthermore, we are very big on composting here and can't think of a better way to dispose of our bodies than burying us near naked (I'd like some kind of flowing Boho Hippie Chick dress, Keith says T-shirt and jeans good for him) directly in a dirt lined hole.
So, I started the process last week by making a phone call to our county coroner to ask about rules and regs in Illinois regarding this. He was pleasant but admitted no one had asked him about that...ever. Said he'd look into it and get back to me. He hasn't called back yet but I'll ring him again soon. We'd like to have the plans for this wrapped up by Christmas. We're not getting any younger you know.
So tell me. Anyone else out there have this same wish? To be owners of your very own family cemetery right there where you live? And if you one of my followers from another country what kind of laws do you have regarding this issue?
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