I mentioned that there are definitely things that our culture is uncomfortable dealing with: death, emotions and imagination.
Death I get, I understand that. Death is this big, frightening, unknown and it sparks off of the selfish core that sits inside us all; that big and important you will one day be gone forever. And I'm certainly not knocking that selfish core, it's necessary to our survival. Ultimately though, I think we sort of collectively look at death as a society in the same way that I look at my student loan - I know that at some point I'm going to have to pay that fucker off, but I'm going to worry about it later.
In our culture, someone dies and within days the body is "processed" for it's send off, and the ugly truth of a body is hidden away forever, and all that fuss and muss about death is dealt with within a weeks time. There's always a tombstone or an urn full of ashes to give us that sense of permanence, and a place to get emotional later when it's less embarrassing and no one is looking.
There are some cultures that keep a corpse in the house for an extended period of time and allows for people to deal with their grief and sorrow. Not only is it uncomfortable for many of us to bare witness to other people's grief and sorrow, but the idea of being a corpse is almost somehow like a failure of some sort - like you lost the race.
Kids, we're all going to lose that race. And if you're like me, you logically know this, but denial has a strong grip. A huge part of me still believes that I will live forever. A huge part of me still believes that I'm 19 and will one day be a rock star...
I apologize if all this talk of death has brought your day down, but there is a shining spot in the darkness here guys. A British company called LifeGem can turn your ashes into a diamond.
It's another shot at immortality y'all! Hooray!
Song Stuck In My Head Right Now: Can’t Fight This Feeling by REO Speedwagon. Seriously, it’s killing me…
5 comments:
i found out about the life gem right around when my cat died. they make cats into precious jewels, too! i entertained the thought for a little while, pretending i had the money to have my loved ones turned into jewelry form, but i just know i would end up dropping it down the toilet or losing it between the cushions at a dive bar. and it's hard enough to see your beloved in a wooden box, let alone as a rock.
as for me, i want my remains preserved forever as a taxidermied old lady sitting cross-legged on a couch. you can comb my hair and put in curlers and decorate me for christmas.
Can I borrow your taxidermied self to stick into a closet and scare the crap out of visitors?
I wouldn't do anything dirty with you. Not that you would object to anyway...
death is, as it probably should be- my biggest anxiety.
its like one of those breakups you REALLY dont want to happen... you know its going to but you REALLY REALLY dont want it to.
but we'll all kick it again someday... maybe as snails. they always look like they are havin a good time.
I too have weirdness about death and death rituals (funerals, burials, etc). In fact, I have a Day of the Dead skull tattoo partially to commemorate this weirdness and my hope that it become less weird. (The other part just because it is a badass custom tattoo.)
For a long time I wanted to be thrown in the road after I passed on, human road kill of sorts. BUt I think that might just be too freaky, or just plain illegal. Recently I also heard about Lifegems and I think that is a splendid idea. I am going to write it into my will. And hopefully, if I can collect enough dollars, I am going to petition to have our cats gemified when they pass. Than again, at current count we have 5 and thus this becomes a mighty expensive prospect in the event of tragic happenings. Maybe I will jsut get a tattoo sprinkled with the ashes of the kitties instead. Or both.
Nevertheless, you best believe I will be going out with a bang... and some serious bling.
oh my god! i'm so excited. I have a tiny little box with some of my dad's ashes. i'm totally going to turn him into a gem. nah...I like it better when people go "oooh...what's in here?" and end up with dad dust up their nose and down their throat.
But then...
"At Kitty Hawk United Methodist church a few Sundays ago the sunlight coming through a stained glass window enveloped the gem with spectral light that practically rendered me witless. Mom is in my heart and now with me every day."
William Allen Lucas (son )
I wouldn't mind being rendered witless.
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