Losing a loved one is difficult, and you will always remember their impact on your life. Here are the best ways to honor your loved ones after their passing.
There’s a lot to love in life, but unfortunately, it’s natural to lose loved ones. It can be heartbreaking, but they’re not gone completely—their memories live on in this world, and there are ways you can honor them even after they’re gone.
Support What They Supported
One of the sweetest ways to honor your loved one while also helping the world is to support what they supported and donate to causes they cared about. For example, if they were an animal lover, consider donating to the ASPCA or local shelters. If they struggled with cancer in their final days, consider supporting organizations working to find a cure and stop premature cancer deaths. You can even donate in their name so all the credit goes to them. Support like this doesn’t have to end after one donation either. Instead, you can donate every year in their memory.
Spreading Their Ashes
More people choose to be cremated rather than buried in today’s age, and part of that is because their family and friends can spread their ashes if they so wish. When buried, people can visit your gravesite and bring flowers, but many would rather not have a traditional funeral. Instead, they want to be spread in their favorite places, such as:
- The mountains
- Their favorite park
- Where they were born
- Where they lived
- The ocean
There are many options to choose from, and if you want to honor your loved one, you’ll take their ashes and spread them where they wanted. With that said, spreading ashes can be tricky. Some places require advanced notice or may not want you to spread ashes at all. For example, there are specific rules about spreading ashes at sea and how far away from the shore is safe to spread ashes. On top of that, you must have a permit to ensure you spread the ashes safely and don’t disturb the marine life in the area.
Start New Traditions
Another fun way to honor your loved one is by starting a new tradition inspired by them. It doesn’t need to be anything too special or over the top—it just needs to be something you can easily do to help you remember them. Maybe your grandparent cooked a special dish in a particular way. Even though they’re gone, and the dish won’t taste the exact same, you can make it for special occasions so it seems like they’re still there. It doesn’t make up for them being gone, but it’s a sweet way to remember them and honor their memory, even when they’ve been gone for years. These are some of the best ways to honor your loved one after their passing, but it will all depend on who the person was. Everyone is different, and you may honor your loved one in an entirely unique way.