When we were children growing up, we were dragged along to the funeral parlor (yep that is what they called it) for visitation for our deceased relatives. We had to go in, make a quick pass by the open casket and stand by our mother as she said beautiful words to the grieving. Then we were given some quarters and allowed to go to the break room where there were vending machines. Cokes and candy bars were our treat for being good children. Often cousins would join us there and we had our own visitation while our parents mingled in the other room. So seeing dead bodies was never shocking, even after I became clergy. But the idea of needed a photo, while not problematic, is not something I find I need. No one in a casket ever looked like they did in real life. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. They always get me thinking.
Thank you for this reflection on this images! I couldn't agree more, although for me they are just a little more macabre than I like, but I also know others and certainly our ancestors had much different views on this. I try not to judge the people of the past using today's morality as that isn't right on our part.
I also really appreciate the "Original Testament" stories and turn to them frequently for comfort and understanding of those people and their times!
My mother died eight years ago after a trying month in home hospice. She died quietly in the night, mercifully, thanks to a morphine drip that finally took care of her pain. In the morning when we discovered she had passed, the hospice workers helped me wash her and comb her hair. I took a picture then, because I needed a reminder of what she looked like at rest with no more pain. I would never have posted it, but I’m glad I have it.
When we were children growing up, we were dragged along to the funeral parlor (yep that is what they called it) for visitation for our deceased relatives. We had to go in, make a quick pass by the open casket and stand by our mother as she said beautiful words to the grieving. Then we were given some quarters and allowed to go to the break room where there were vending machines. Cokes and candy bars were our treat for being good children. Often cousins would join us there and we had our own visitation while our parents mingled in the other room. So seeing dead bodies was never shocking, even after I became clergy. But the idea of needed a photo, while not problematic, is not something I find I need. No one in a casket ever looked like they did in real life. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. They always get me thinking.
Thank you for this reflection on this images! I couldn't agree more, although for me they are just a little more macabre than I like, but I also know others and certainly our ancestors had much different views on this. I try not to judge the people of the past using today's morality as that isn't right on our part.
I also really appreciate the "Original Testament" stories and turn to them frequently for comfort and understanding of those people and their times!
My mother died eight years ago after a trying month in home hospice. She died quietly in the night, mercifully, thanks to a morphine drip that finally took care of her pain. In the morning when we discovered she had passed, the hospice workers helped me wash her and comb her hair. I took a picture then, because I needed a reminder of what she looked like at rest with no more pain. I would never have posted it, but I’m glad I have it.