Recently, as a volunteer, I helped prepare, facilitate and complete two burials at Heritage Acres Memorial Sanctuary, the only dedicated natural burial ground in the Cincinnati area. Looking out over the 42 acres of expansive meadow giving way to wooded forest, it does not resemble a traditional cemetery. The landscape evokes feelings of spaciousness and healing. The nature spirits are palpable enveloping all who visit with loving and caring appreciation.
As a community, we come together to facilitate the most ancient of human practices – burying our dead. Natural burial is often referred to as “green burial” and embodies ecological principles that maintain the integrity and health of the land. A natural burial does not inhibit the decomposition of the body, rather nature proceeds unencumbered allowing the body to be recycled into the earth. Those associated with green burial refer to themselves as stewards of the land and are serving not only the people seeking burial in our time but are caring for the land for generations to come.
An Overview of Green Burial
Heritage Acres provides burial services for cremains or a body. In part, what makes it green, is ensuring that the body is not preserved with embalming fluid which is toxic to the land. After death, the body often goes to a funeral home to be prepared. The funeral director needs to ensure that all materials are biodegradable. The body can be shrouded in a natural fabric like cotton (no polyester or non-biodegradable fabrics), placed in a natural fiber casket or pine coffin. Cremains require a biodegradable urn and need processing before being buried or spread on the ground.
A traditional cemetery typically uses concrete vaults that the caskets are placed in. At Heritage Acres, a team of volunteers dig the hole by hand. No machines are used keeping with the natural traditions of our ancestors. The body is lowered using straps directly into the ground where it will decompose over time. There is a small stone with the person’s name, date of birth and date of death and a few words, if desired. Each grave has a GPS marking so people can easily find their person when visiting.
Heritage Acres is Community Deathcare
There are three paid employees at Heritage Acres – the Cemetery Manager, a Land Steward and an Administrative Assistant – everyone else is a volunteer. The spirit of community deathcare naturally emerges because the volunteers feel such a strong connection with the honorable act of helping people bury their dead in a natural and organic setting.
The day before a burial, the grave digging team receives the dimensions needed to dig the grave. They dig the hole using shovels; it’s four feet deep with straight sides. Three small logs are placed on the bottom of the grave so that when the body is lowered, the straps can be retrieved. Four boards are placed over the grave that the body will rest on until it is lowered. On the day of the burial, a volunteer team is assembled to decorate the grave, help direct traffic, drive people who can’t easily walk in a golf cart to the grave, set up a tent if there’s rain or too much sun and do whatever needs to be done.
The first burial I helped with was for a man who loved green burial. He served in the military and was honored by the tradition of Taps. I was asked to decorate the grave and received the inspiration to use flower petals to form an eagle which is a universal US/ military symbol. Thankfully, I had a helper – Lindsay, a graduate student in fine arts, was also volunteering and she helped me to pull off the eagle. The body arrived in a simple shroud and laid on the boards. The bugle man was standing at a distance behind the grave and played the customary Taps. Tears fell from eyes. It was a small private family service. Words were shared, the body was lowered and the shoveling of dirt began.
The Healing Power of Shoveling Dirt
There’s usually a team of 3-5 volunteers to shovel the dirt back into the grave. We begin with the first few shovels and make space for family members to join in. It’s quite a task, filling the large hole. Some family members may vigorously participate, some may shovel a few scoops while others witness on the sidelines. The family members are free to do what feels good and right for them. The volunteers keep the momentum going to complete the burial. At the second burial that weekend, there were four young kids under the age of eight (or so) who were using kid sized shovels laying to rest their grandfather or perhaps he was their great grandfather – a multi-generational ritual where the young are learning about death as it is happening in their lives. Death is a natural part of life.
For me, when I hear the sound of the shovel scooping the dirt and the dirt falling back into its home, it musters a meditative pattern – scoop, move the shovel to the grave, release and repeat. With an open and loving heart, release and repeat. Laughter and joy are invited to the ritual and expressions of joy often arise. Sadness and grief show up and the land holds the grief like a master – supporting the mourners – providing calm and grounding. A ritual with a beginning (the grave is dug), a middle (a graveside ceremony), and an end (the grave is filled). From there, Mother Earth and time help the grave to settle. When the people walk away back to their cars, they seem to be lightened by the experience even though they are grieving their loved one.
As above, so below.
As for the body – resting in the womb of Mother Earth – it returns to its source. As the body decomposes, the soil is enriched. The healing power of dirt is literal. The body becomes part of a living ecosystem and places like Heritage Acres carry a palpable healing energy – a beacon of wholeness and connection to all of life – emanating from our magical and beneficent planet, Mother Earth, our home.
For information about Heritage Acres Memorial Sanctuary is a non-profit organization, go to their website: https://www.heritageacresmemorial.org to find more information. Check out the pricing by donating or volunteering.
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