In remembrance of those we have lost, we hold on to the memories we have of them. This is among the many quotes we write when our loved ones pass on. People find solace differently. Some in sorrow quotes, others in bible verses, and others celebrate the deceased persons life while a group of others attend the burials to bid their loved one farewell. But what if you are not in a position to attend the burial? What if the current situation cannot allow you to attend? There are many ways or tips to plan for a memorial service for your beloved from afar.
On a normal day someone would travel and join the rest of the family in mourning for their loved ones, give them support or even a shoulder to cry on or even help them organize the memorial by trying to find great headstone prices and helping with other arrangements. Things are different now with the COVID-19 pandemic in the streets.
It has made it impossible for funeral crowds to gather and hugs to be exchanged. With people quarantined, others self-quarantined, and a few locked down in different areas, it is not possible to attend or even plan a send-off for your family.
People end up feeling sorrow and guilty for not burying their family as they wished or as it is supposed to be according to the family traditions. Here are some ways to plan a memorial for your loved ones from afar.
If you have self-quarantined and one of your families passes on, since there are no public gatherings whatsoever, you could plan some kind of vigil for your beloved in your home where you light candles so your neighbours can join you in mourning your loved one.
You can do an online memorial service for your loved one. You can agree with your friends and other family members to hold an online burial. This includes recording the burial for the sake of those not around, hosting online prayer meetings if you are affiliated with a religious institution, and chatting with your family members. With these, you are able to bid your loved one’s farewell.
Create a crowd-sourced photo album or a scrapbook for the pictures of your loved one. With this, you are able to remember the memories you had with the deceased. You can also ask your friends for the pictures of them and include them in your photo album, this will help recreate you memories together even if you have texts or messages you shared with the deceased you can print them and include them in the scrapbook.
You can also do some donations in the memory of your loved one like print shirts with his or her picture; send emails and mails commemorating them etc. This can help you in overcoming grief. Once the restrictions have been lifted you can perform a physical memorial service for your loved one to commemorate him or her.
This can lift the guilt. In cases where one is far from their family, they can send cremation candles if the family member was cremated.
When it comes to choosing a memorial for your loved one, there are lots of great Monuments available and they come in different shapes and materials. On the monument, you can write something based on the likes of the deceased, or perhaps a well-known quote that described the deceased best.
It can be a bible verse or a quote or some song tunes they loved when they were alive. This is good for commemorating the deceased. In cases where the deceased had written a will, you will have to follow his or her wishes though from afar. If they wanted to be buried at a cemetery, you will have to choose the best for them; you can find them online or some references from friends.
This is important since you will have done something they wished for when they were alive. Even if you are not present during the burial then at least you will have done something for them for their send-off.