Why I Am Choosing Green Burial

For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved nature and connecting with other life forms. Laying in the grass looking up the massive tree trunks, counting their branches, admiring their leaves, their shadows dancing gracefully over the land as the wind blows…questioning the history that lies within that memory. The knowledge and wisdom bestowed upon the being that allows themselves to open up enough to receive those sort of treasures. The vibratory force of life that one feels with a bare palm pressed into the bark of an ancient tree tells it all. Couple that energy with my fascination for death and it’s an obvious choice. I’ve always envisioned my body being wrapped in big banana leaves, or thin cotton and laid into a river or shallow grave. Something natural. When I got into the funeral industry in Connecticut I became aware that that might not be a possibility if I chose to stay here. Still today as I write this, 6 years later in 2021, Connecticut does not have much to offer for green cemeteries. I have made peace with alternate options (my husband and I have a favorite cemetery and another where we were wed) so it is not a ‘life or death’ sort of thing for me…however, it would be nice to know my natural burial could be a reality someday. I’d really rather like to avoid the heavy concrete burial container that is required by most cemeteries as part of their ‘perpetual care plan’. I suppose it helps maintain a level ground and upright monuments, but I want my body to be broken down (more rapidly if given a choice) and fed back into the land to support more life. To become a fertilizer and breed new life is really quite dreamy from a mother perspective…After the birth of my daughter, preplanning rose up the priority ladder and now I’m beginning to get antsy about my options. Whatever this small piece of writing turns into I hope it helps inspire others to consider their wishes and make sure that we have the proper tools and resources to make our dreams a reality! …although I guess the ‘reality’ would only be someone else’s reality at that point. But you get the idea.