Losing a loved one can come with some tough emotions. Aside from the fact that we’re coping with the grief of not having them around anymore, we begin to think about how we’re going to carry them with us in the future, to remember them and keep them dear to us. Whether it’s a family member, friend, or even a pet you’re saying goodbye to, finding the right memorial for them can really help you through the grieving process. Here are a few options worth considering.
Find a place for a plaque
While keeping the memories of a loved one with you might be the goal, a lot of people like to do it in the form of having a location or a site that they can visit. Of course, for a lot of people, the headstone serves this purpose just fine, but not everyone is buried, and it’s not always convenient to visit them even if so. A good alternative is having a memorial plaque put up with a dedication to your loved one. You can have one put on a bench somewhere, or a location specific to your loved one, with the permission of the owner. You can even erect a memorial plaque in your own garden.
Grow something special for them
Popular for both its aesthetic beauty, its environmental friendliness, and the poetic nature of loss leading to new life, planting a tree as a dedication and memorial to a loved one can result in a tribute that will last not only over your lifetime but might be standing several lifetimes after you, as well. There are plenty of services that specialize in planting a memorial tree such as TheGifedTree.com, which can handle much of the logistics for you. You can combine it with the idea above, and have a plaque installed at the foot of the tree, making it precisely clear what its purpose is.
Consider getting them a special urn
In many cases, people want to get an external memorial for their loved one because there may not be a headstone, such as in the case of a cremation. If that’s the case, then the most common way to keep them in your memories is to have their ashes put in an urn, which can then be displayed in your home or a special place and then visited. There are all manner of urns you can get, with different decorative styles, and made out of different materials. A lot of people will also use an urn to scatter the ashes of the one they love in a location that was important to them.
Wear it with you
Memorials don’t have to be isolated to objects that are put in one fixed place, by any means. A lot of people will create dedications that they can always keep on their person. One popular way to do this is with a tattoo that is done in tribute to a loved one. However, one form that might be a little less permanently affecting on the body, but just as ever-present and respectful, is with necklaces for ashes by Memorials.com. Memorial jewelry can come in all shapes and sizes and can be the perfect thing for someone who wants to keep the memory of a loved one but might not want to keep an urn of ashes in their home.
Create a memorial photo montage
Nowadays, many of us have lots and lots of photos of the people we want to say goodbye to, which can make it a lot easier to create a memorial for them, as well. Creating a memorial photo display can be simple, whether you want to choose one photograph that best represents how you remember them or a montage of treasured memories and important moments from their lives. You can revisit them in your memories much more easily with them, making sure that those moments don’t get lost in time. Nowadays, you can even create digital photo montages and, using a digital photo frame as shown at Techradar.com, you can have an ever-changing selection of photos taking you on a trip down memory lane.
Create a memorial with your art
Sometimes, a memorial can mean a lot more if you put a little part of yourself into it. There’s nothing to say that memorials have to be physical objects. Sometimes, artistic pieces, be they songs, poems, or images, created in honor of a loved one, can last a lot longer. This can be an especially helpful option for those who might not have the money to create a more physical memorial. Something heartfelt, creative, and from your own experience, or in collaboration with someone who is more experienced than you, can give you something beautiful to share at their memorial service. Then it can be shared and remembered forevermore after that, as well. You don’t have to meet any specific standards, just create genuinely from the heart.
Make a donation in their honor
One option becoming increasingly common in the last will and wishes of many individuals: there is a growing number of people who prefer to ensure that their legacy continues by making a positive impact on the world. One approach to achieve this goal is to set up a fund aimed at contributing to a cause that holds significance for the departed loved one. There are plenty of organizations that offer special provisions to take the goodwill of a departed loved one into a lasting memorial. If raising the necessary funds proves challenging, an alternative option is for you and some of their cherished ones to volunteer, thereby fulfilling their final wishes in a meaningful and practical manner.
If your loved one didn’t leave behind any final wishes as to how they can be remembered, then the tips above might be able to help you find a way that they would have approved of, while helping you through your own grieving process.
Meg is an author at Cinnamon Hollow. She writes on a variety of topics sharing tips and ideas for daily life.