These days, there are lots of options when it comes to laying our loved ones to rest. Oh you thought it was just burial or cremation? Well what if you could grow your dearly departed granny into a tree? Italian company Capsula Mundi is proposing to do just that.
Basically, the deceased is buried in a biodegradable pod instead of a coffin, and seeds are planted on top. As the body decays and decomposes, the nutrients seep into the tree and help it grow. So far it’s still in the concepting stage, and there is a lot of legal red tape to get through, but the company is hoping to make tree pod burial a reality someday.
When I first heard about it, my immediate thought was — that is so creepy! But the more I think about it, the cooler I think it is. I mean, if you can get your cremation ashes made into a diamond, why not have your remains nourish a living tree? I don’t think a burial could get any more eco-friendly than that.
Besides, wouldn’t it be nice for loved ones to visit and have a shady tree to sit under? Full disclosure here — a picnic at a burial site was a normal part of my childhood, so maybe that’s why I’m so open to this idea. My brother died when I was a toddler, so every so often, our family would visit his grave, bring flowers, and when we were little, have a picnic. He’s buried under a tree, and I have some really great memories with my parents and other brothers, remembering him fondly and playing under the shade.
I think it sounds weird on the surface because death is just a difficult subject to deal with in the first place. Not many people want to contemplate their mortality, and customs and rituals like traditional burial can be comforting during a time when loved ones may just be going through the motions.
But these tree pods sounds pretty cool to me, and an ultimate reminder of the phrase, “Ashes to ashes and dust to dust.” Why not let some of that dust help grow a living thing? Seems like the full circle of life to me.
Watch Video at The Stir
Would you ever want to be buried in a “tree pod” like this?
