UNCORKED IN A FUNERAL HOME?
Don a blindfold to wrap your
mind around a new concept. You
will be led to a place where the fruit of mulled inspiration has been
realized. Instead of your
eyesight, you will use other senses to determine where you are.
After a momentary respite in
a cushioned chair, you stand before a substantial object that you
are asked to explore with your hands.
This may be a dead giveaway once you feel the glass of a round high-top
table surface that rests upon the familiar curvatures of a barrel.
But, wait! With wide-open
access to the lobby allowing for extraneous awareness, you detect an aroma of
fresh bouquets when the door opens to the adjacent room. Meanwhile, from that source you savor
the melodic articulation of a type of music typically unheard in this supposed
environment; it is a hymn – the label of which you easily resurrect from the
cavern of your childhood churchgoing recollections.
Now you feel confused. You wonder where, indeed, you are! Someone who you erroneously surmise is a sommelier reveals the answer upon suggesting that you remove your
blindfold. Through a glass wall you
catch the flavor of what’s going on in the room diagonally next door. To your astonishment, you realize it is
a full-bodied funeral service!
You thirst for a sense of
transparency, an orientation to the unique aspects of this setting that will dilute
your sense of discombobulation and provide clarity. Here you stand in a space that exudes opportunity for the
sweetness of a casual social milieu, though at the moment folks are occupying a
proximal area where funereal tartness is presumed. You want further proof that you are in a funeral home, but
the classic racks of wine bottles along the wall belie such validation.
The innovative creation of a
wine cellar is of recent vintage at the Hodges Funeral Home. Perhaps bottled-up emotional
expressions can be tapped here where a mimicked milieu simulates authentic public
wine venues traditionally geared toward conviviality. It is a place for the fluidity of relaxation
that can override the dryness of generic funeral gatherings.
Mourners appreciate the ambience of this comfort
zone. While seated or standing at
the barrel tables festooned with a bevy of corks under glass, they can view a
television screen that showcases a video of a decedent’s lifetime
hallmarks. A tribute video is superimposed on one of several background scenes that can be chosen by a family to accentuate a distinctive connection to the decedent's lifetime experiences.
If a caterer has been
employed, they can consume food and even real wine, as long as the caterer has
a liquor license. At this point,
that little detail is beyond the scope of a funeral home, so all of those
bottles lining the wall are empty.
Restaurant owners and individuals donated them to bolster the decorative
design.
A nearby reception room
might be utilized as well.
Guests have endorsed this
novel approach to memorial celebrations, purportedly giving it rave reviews. They are apt to leave the premises with
a positive aftertaste, probably prompting an attitudinal alteration of their funeral
home perceptions.
Soon there will be further
blending of new appointments within this established facility. The room where services take place is
about to be transformed. Chapel-style
pews will be replaced by cushioned furniture to engender
a homey atmosphere more akin to living room-style seating in a hotel lobby.
The moral of this
story: rethink the way you think
about funeral homes. They are
changing in ways you would never have imagined. Sparkling effervescence is no
longer foreign to the territory. Next time you hold a glass of Chardonnay, think of the possibilities
and make a toast to the new life that is being breathed into death management.
*******
For more word play... read the pre-planning reference book,
Pondering Leaves: Composing and Conveying Your Life Story's Epilogue
