Parents are not supposed to outlive their children, but life doesn’t always agree. When a child passes on and you want to have cremation services for them, there might be certain considerations that you might not think through for an adult. Here are some items to decide upon.
Above all else, you want your child to be okay. Even though they are gone, you still feel like they might be scared when the cremation process happens. Talk to the cremation provider about sending something into the crematory with them. You can dress them in anything you’d like, but you also might like the idea of sending a small teddy bear or another animal in with them. Don’t send anything in that you want to keep yourself as you can’t get the item back. But having something go along with them might be a comfort to you.
Attending the cremation is a possibility for an adult or a child, but when it’s your child, you are more likely going to want to attend. You don’t want them to be alone, again, and you might want to ensure that everything goes well. Attending the cremation can be a lot, but it can also help you get the closure you need to move forward.
You want to do something for your child that embodies their life, as short as it was. Perhaps instead of a formal memorial service, you want something bright, filled with balloons, and more of a carnival feel to it. You might not do that for an adult, but for a child, it’s fitting. You want to celebrate their life and remind everyone of who they were during the short time they had with you. Even if you have more of a formal memorial, you can still decorate the space in a way that your child would appreciate.
You can have the memorial in the funeral home, but you might also consider something like your child’s favorite park, their school playground, or another place that they adored and always wanted to visit. The location could be different based on their personality and likes.
It might not feel right to use traditional hymns or classical music when your child had a different taste in music. If they liked a Youtube sensation, use their songs. If they appreciated country music, there’s nothing wrong with blasting that at the service. Try to use music that went with their personality and that they would enjoy. Anything that reminds your family of them can be a good fit.
Losing a family member is always hard, but losing a child can be downright heart-wrenching. When you are certain that cremation services are what you want for your child, contact the professionals at Hopler & Eschbach Funeral Home for the options and packages. We will help you with every step of the process and relieve you of as many burdens as we can during this hard time.