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Reimagining Death: Stories and Practical Wisdom for Home Funerals and Green Burials
Honor your loved ones and the earth by choosing practical, spiritual, and eco-friendly after-death care
Natural, legal, and innovative after-death care options are transforming the paradigm of the existing funeral industry, helping families and communities recover their instinctive capacity to care for a loved one after death and do so in creative and healing ways. Reimagining Death offers stories and guidance for home funeral vigils, advance after-death care directives, green burials, and conscious dying. When we bring art and beauty, meaningful ritual, and joy to ease our loss and sorrow, we are greening the gateway of death and returning home to ourselves, to the wisdom of our bodies, and to the earth.
Natural, legal, and innovative after-death care options are transforming the paradigm of the existing funeral industry, helping families and communities recover their instinctive capacity to care for a loved one after death and do so in creative and healing ways. Reimagining Death offers stories and guidance for home funeral vigils, advance after-death care directives, green burials, and conscious dying. When we bring art and beauty, meaningful ritual, and joy to ease our loss and sorrow, we are greening the gateway of death and returning home to ourselves, to the wisdom of our bodies, and to the earth.
- GenresNonfictionDeath
296 pages, Paperback
Published January 8, 2019
36 people are currently reading
1369 people want to read
About the author
Lucinda Herring
1 book19 followersLUCINDA HERRING has worked at the cutting edge of the green funeral movement for more than twenty years, beginning with others in the 1990s to quietly care for loved ones after death. Today she is one of the leading voices for more healing and ecological ways to care for our dead. Herring is a home funeral/green disposition consultant and guide, an interfaith minister, and a licensed funeral director in the state of Washington. She speaks regularly about her work, and through her company Limina LLC—Thresholds Consulting and Ministry, she offers Advance After-Death Care planning, home funeral/green disposition education and trainings, and celebrant/ministerial services for families and communities who are reclaiming their innate right to care for each other and the earth at the end of life. Lucinda is also a storyteller and festival maker, committed to bringing art, beauty, ritual and celebration to all of life’s thresholds. She has lived on an island in the Puget Sound for over thirty years, amongst people who love exploring and creating new paradigms and ways of being that can be of service and blessing to all.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
March 31, 2019
There is a lot of information packed into this book, many insights and personal experiences. This is a book for an adult of any age, whether you're contemplating a green burial or home funeral for yourself, even decades down the road, or if someone for whom you care is doing so. There is much food for thought provided along with facts and suggestions of where to research information for your individual situation.
I've borrowed this book from the library, but it is one I will now purchase both for the factual information and for the thought-provoking ideas and perspectives.
I've borrowed this book from the library, but it is one I will now purchase both for the factual information and for the thought-provoking ideas and perspectives.
October 18, 2021
This informative journey into the world of alternative after-death care was absolutely phenomenal. The numerous, deeply personal stories were told with compassion, beauty, and grace and the practical wisdom in each chapter was simply but comprehensively stated. This book should be required reading not only for everyone in the funeral industry but for all health-care workers and legislators. I am so thrilled that there is starting to be a more open dialogue about death, dignity, home funerals, and especially green burial. This was a truly brilliant book!
March 21, 2019
Inspiring read that really digs into the imagination and provides hope for how after-death care can be handled more personally and environmentally conscious. Each chapter provides extremely helpful information on practical applications for topics discussed. This book now has a permanent residence in my collection of reference and guide books for handling the wonders and unknown evoked by death.
did-not-finish
January 26, 2019No. Just no. This book was not what I was hoping it would be. I think Caitlin Doughty is more the voice I want to hear on this topic, not some grown assed woman who still calls her parents mama and papa. I know that’s mean, I’m sorry. But this book was just ridiculous. I wanted real information I could find useful, not a ton of personal stories and creepy photos.
February 14, 2019
I loved this book. It's unique. It describes new ways to deal with our dead, such as home funerals and ecological burials, offering lots of DIY information and advice. What makes it special, though, is the quality of the writing. Lucinda Herring is a gifted storyteller and prose stylist. Her book is enjoyable despite its subject matter. Through her images and details, she brings much-needed intimacy and authenticity to that time between death and final disposition, about which most of us are clueless. By way of her own experience and others’ stories, Herring shows us the way to more meaningful goodbyes to our loved ones.
October 1, 2019
A stunningly beautiful look at what death care could be. The inclusion of the photos was super critical. I found some of the accounts of death to be a little too spiritual, but understanding that each person approaches finding meaning in death in their own way, it didn't completely turn me off. Hearing stories of how diverse families welcomed and interacted with their deceased family member in ways that worked for their family was really wonderful; that it isn't a one-size fits all thing. Less an indictment of the funeral industry, it really illustrates the positive possibilities of the alternative. Totally recommend to anyone who is going to die one day. So, everyone.
September 17, 2019
Reimagining Death tackles very important topics that many human beings shy away from confronting, often until the last minute when it is too late to have access to the most choices. The book definitely has a target audience- one that I thought I was part of but it turns out, not so much. This affects my review, but does not mean someone else would not enjoy this book more than I did. I am reviewing mostly on my own tastes and unmet expectations.
It is necessary to mention that I'm an atheist, but not the annoying internet dude kind that finds superiority in their lack of belief in God(s.) I respect that religion and spirituality have important and often positive roles in peoples lives and have no desire to take that away. That said, my opinions and outlook on green burial and other topics covered in this book come from a love of nature and desire to feed the Earth and those on it when I die. It comes from a rational place of wanting to avoid contributing to the suffering of others and to climate change in death. I also have thought about death fairly regularly from a young age, so I didn't need to learn a lesson that death should be spoken about and embraced as part of life. I was hoping that this book would teach me a lot about conventional and green practices in depth, how far reaching the negative effects of the former are, and the importance of viewing death differently. Instead, I got a book that is very heavy on the stories and very light on the "practical wisdom." Every time I would get past a long, drawn out story about a death ritual, I would get to a section I thought would teach me what I wanted to know. Unfortunately, I would just find a bullet point list with a few bits of information before the author moved on to another story. All of the stories were written in a style that just didn't work for me. Most of them seemed longer than they needed to be.
It is very clear that the author is writing from her perspective as a a "woo woo" spiritual hippie type who lives in a community on Whidbey Island that I assume is predominantly white, middle to owning class people of a similar bent. I have been to the island once and it is an absolutely gorgeous place, but is very unlike where most people live. Every story is written in this very new agey perspective, assigning extreme cosmic significance and meaning to all sorts happenings. There is a lot of psychic, spiritual, and other things that were of no interest to me, however much I understood the significance to the author and her friends. I think I was just hoping for something that didn't treat everything around death as a magical experience all the way down to washing the genitals of your mother's dead, rigored body or anointing your dead husband's perineum with oils. Sure, we can find spiritual experiences in after death rituals, but is all of it a fantastical experience full of immense meaning? It may be for some, and that is fine. But, the book is written as if it should be for everyone.
Another thing that makes the author's centering of her own experience clear is that cost is pretty much never discussed. Is a green burial and home funeral cheaper (after all of the legal paperwork and home hospice care many cannot afford?) I don't know. It was something I wanted to know. The author discusses her housekeeper nonchalantly as if it's something everyone has and all the stories focus on people who were able to afford home hospice care from what I can tell. Do I believe people should be able to die at home or wherever they prefer? Absolutely. But, many people don't. There is a section about if someone dies in a hospital, but it is not a centered experience throughout the book. Pretty much everyone discussed seems to be someone the author is related to or is in her community.
Even though I did not get a whole lot out of these stories, though, I do think that some people can. I think that reading these stories can help people realize that there are alternatives to many mainstream western after death rituals. I think that these stories could be comforting to someone who has recently lost someone or who needs to see death as a topic that should be embraced rather than avoided. I think people similar to the author in particular could enjoy these stories. I think people looking for story telling more than practical information on the topic would enjoy these stories.
I didn't really get what I was looking for until the last two chapters of the book. The chapters, "Reimagining the Future in Ecological After Death Care" and "Be Prepared: Creating a Plan with Family and Friends," were the most useful to me. They were still too light on the information I wanted, but I did finally get to read more about what practices like embalming and typical cremation do to the body and the environment. There were a lot of things I learned such as alternatives to cremation if you don't want a burial and how these alternatives can actually be good for the environment rather than neutral. I found things like composting burials, the use of cryogenics, water processing and other methods to be very interesting. The appendices at the end also offer information and sources for those looking for more outside the format of the book. There are also a lot of lovely photos of green burials and rituals that were really cool to look at.
All in all, I don't regret reading this book. I would recommend it to someone looking to understand how after death rituals do not have to be as expected. If you are more looking for the kinds of information I was, I think you could easily skip around in this book, choose what you need, and leave the rest.
This was also posted to my blog.
It is necessary to mention that I'm an atheist, but not the annoying internet dude kind that finds superiority in their lack of belief in God(s.) I respect that religion and spirituality have important and often positive roles in peoples lives and have no desire to take that away. That said, my opinions and outlook on green burial and other topics covered in this book come from a love of nature and desire to feed the Earth and those on it when I die. It comes from a rational place of wanting to avoid contributing to the suffering of others and to climate change in death. I also have thought about death fairly regularly from a young age, so I didn't need to learn a lesson that death should be spoken about and embraced as part of life. I was hoping that this book would teach me a lot about conventional and green practices in depth, how far reaching the negative effects of the former are, and the importance of viewing death differently. Instead, I got a book that is very heavy on the stories and very light on the "practical wisdom." Every time I would get past a long, drawn out story about a death ritual, I would get to a section I thought would teach me what I wanted to know. Unfortunately, I would just find a bullet point list with a few bits of information before the author moved on to another story. All of the stories were written in a style that just didn't work for me. Most of them seemed longer than they needed to be.
It is very clear that the author is writing from her perspective as a a "woo woo" spiritual hippie type who lives in a community on Whidbey Island that I assume is predominantly white, middle to owning class people of a similar bent. I have been to the island once and it is an absolutely gorgeous place, but is very unlike where most people live. Every story is written in this very new agey perspective, assigning extreme cosmic significance and meaning to all sorts happenings. There is a lot of psychic, spiritual, and other things that were of no interest to me, however much I understood the significance to the author and her friends. I think I was just hoping for something that didn't treat everything around death as a magical experience all the way down to washing the genitals of your mother's dead, rigored body or anointing your dead husband's perineum with oils. Sure, we can find spiritual experiences in after death rituals, but is all of it a fantastical experience full of immense meaning? It may be for some, and that is fine. But, the book is written as if it should be for everyone.
Another thing that makes the author's centering of her own experience clear is that cost is pretty much never discussed. Is a green burial and home funeral cheaper (after all of the legal paperwork and home hospice care many cannot afford?) I don't know. It was something I wanted to know. The author discusses her housekeeper nonchalantly as if it's something everyone has and all the stories focus on people who were able to afford home hospice care from what I can tell. Do I believe people should be able to die at home or wherever they prefer? Absolutely. But, many people don't. There is a section about if someone dies in a hospital, but it is not a centered experience throughout the book. Pretty much everyone discussed seems to be someone the author is related to or is in her community.
Even though I did not get a whole lot out of these stories, though, I do think that some people can. I think that reading these stories can help people realize that there are alternatives to many mainstream western after death rituals. I think that these stories could be comforting to someone who has recently lost someone or who needs to see death as a topic that should be embraced rather than avoided. I think people similar to the author in particular could enjoy these stories. I think people looking for story telling more than practical information on the topic would enjoy these stories.
I didn't really get what I was looking for until the last two chapters of the book. The chapters, "Reimagining the Future in Ecological After Death Care" and "Be Prepared: Creating a Plan with Family and Friends," were the most useful to me. They were still too light on the information I wanted, but I did finally get to read more about what practices like embalming and typical cremation do to the body and the environment. There were a lot of things I learned such as alternatives to cremation if you don't want a burial and how these alternatives can actually be good for the environment rather than neutral. I found things like composting burials, the use of cryogenics, water processing and other methods to be very interesting. The appendices at the end also offer information and sources for those looking for more outside the format of the book. There are also a lot of lovely photos of green burials and rituals that were really cool to look at.
All in all, I don't regret reading this book. I would recommend it to someone looking to understand how after death rituals do not have to be as expected. If you are more looking for the kinds of information I was, I think you could easily skip around in this book, choose what you need, and leave the rest.
This was also posted to my blog.
January 21, 2020
Honestly skimmed this because the opening/prologue voice got on my nerves, a little woo-woo. But I flipped through all the chapters and really liked her take on laying out the legal limitations and allowances for handling dead bodies. Could make copies out of the back and call it good.
October 29, 2019
On the whole, a very informative book on home funerals and green burials. As mentioned previously, some parts are a little too "woo woo" and spiritual for me. But, the stories shared were both beautiful and informative. And it's very clear that Lucinda Herring knows what she's talking about.
January 18, 2023
Great information around home funerals/vigils and general considerations for why the way we deal with deathcare in the modern US has a long way to go. Reimagining death feels like an invitation to consider the way old world practices can be married with new world realities.
July 8, 2019
Excellent resource for anyone who is looking for facts and affirmation regarding taking care of our dead. The stories and the practical wisdom contained in the book are invaluable!
January 1, 2021
If you're considering reading this book, ask yourself:
1. Will this be my first time reading a book about home funerals and green burials?
2. Do I believe in a personal afterlife and communication between the living and the dead?
If you answer "no" to either or both of these questions, you might want to give this book a pass, unless, like me, you're just wild for books about death.
Three people whose opinions on books like this usually mesh with mine assured me that this book was "a revelation" that would transform the way I look at home funerals and green burial. Naturally, I was eager to experience it. Instead, I experienced a rehash of a lot of material I've encountered in other books and websites, complete with the same problematic cultural appropriation, gender essentialism, and assumption of shared beliefs.
Herring is certainly a gifted storyteller, which probably makes this book highly accessible for someone new to these concepts. But nothing in it struck me as particularly revelatory.
Herring also writes from a very specific set of beliefs about the nature of death and human souls. In some ways, this makes her writing stronger, as she's not trying to tiptoe politely around the vast array of human beliefs. But those of us who don't share those beliefs might have to skip straight over large chunks of the book that deal with these matters. Herring several times encourages readers to "translate" her beliefs to our own. But some of the things she discusses don't translate. Besides which, being told to "just imagine" what it might be like for us, instead of Herring actually entering into a thoughtful consideration, as she does of so many other things, of the possible emotional and psychological gain of home funerals and green burials for those of us who don't believe we're seeing our beloveds' souls off to the afterlife, brings a touch of disappointment.
1. Will this be my first time reading a book about home funerals and green burials?
2. Do I believe in a personal afterlife and communication between the living and the dead?
If you answer "no" to either or both of these questions, you might want to give this book a pass, unless, like me, you're just wild for books about death.
Three people whose opinions on books like this usually mesh with mine assured me that this book was "a revelation" that would transform the way I look at home funerals and green burial. Naturally, I was eager to experience it. Instead, I experienced a rehash of a lot of material I've encountered in other books and websites, complete with the same problematic cultural appropriation, gender essentialism, and assumption of shared beliefs.
Herring is certainly a gifted storyteller, which probably makes this book highly accessible for someone new to these concepts. But nothing in it struck me as particularly revelatory.
Herring also writes from a very specific set of beliefs about the nature of death and human souls. In some ways, this makes her writing stronger, as she's not trying to tiptoe politely around the vast array of human beliefs. But those of us who don't share those beliefs might have to skip straight over large chunks of the book that deal with these matters. Herring several times encourages readers to "translate" her beliefs to our own. But some of the things she discusses don't translate. Besides which, being told to "just imagine" what it might be like for us, instead of Herring actually entering into a thoughtful consideration, as she does of so many other things, of the possible emotional and psychological gain of home funerals and green burials for those of us who don't believe we're seeing our beloveds' souls off to the afterlife, brings a touch of disappointment.
March 6, 2024
While I certainly think there is an audience for this book, I’m not that audience. There is some good introductory information on green burials and home funerals, but it’s buried under a lot of fluff. Herring is very spiritual and that is clear throughout, which isn’t bad, but personally didn’t resonate with me.
August 6, 2020
This book addresses what to do with the gap time between the moment you die and the time the body is taken away to its final disposition. Few people consider this time in their death planning if they do any death planning at all. It is legal in every state or province for families to care for their dead and conduct home vigils or funerals, so the author gives several examples and includes tasteful pictures. The book also discusses green burial and more sustainable disposition options.
Here is a quote I liked: "Being prepared for our deaths enables us to actually turn around and live our lives more fully."
And another one: "In many traditions, the hours and days right after a death are vitally important and sacred. They are viewed as a precious opportunity, a holy interval, when our souls and spirits have enough time and support to fully leave our physical bodies behind. Those who love us are also supported to have real closure and a chance to say goodbye."
I have not changed my plan much as a result of this book, but my mind has expanded to the opportunities available. Well written and a good resource for those people who are interested in this topic.
Here is a quote I liked: "Being prepared for our deaths enables us to actually turn around and live our lives more fully."
And another one: "In many traditions, the hours and days right after a death are vitally important and sacred. They are viewed as a precious opportunity, a holy interval, when our souls and spirits have enough time and support to fully leave our physical bodies behind. Those who love us are also supported to have real closure and a chance to say goodbye."
I have not changed my plan much as a result of this book, but my mind has expanded to the opportunities available. Well written and a good resource for those people who are interested in this topic.
October 10, 2019
3 1/2 stars. First of all, I need to say that, to the best of my knowledge, neither I nor anyone near and dear to me is on the verge of death. I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway. So I wasn’t actively looking for information about home funerals, green burials, or alternative means of dealing with one’s body after death. But I found this book to be informative, and it opened my perspective on how people could approach death. Lucinda Herring is a home funeral director (as opposed to a funeral home director). Her book treats death as something totally natural, something to be shared with loved ones, and a time to celebrate a person’s life. Positive, not depressing, although she does recognize the need for people to grieve. She helps people hold funeral vigils in their own homes, with the unembalmed body on display. Bodies can be wrapped in shrouds, or placed in bio-degradable coffins, or disposed of using alternatives to cremation. Plenty to consider for the future when the need will ultimately arise.
June 19, 2020
Lucinda Herring has offered a stunning gift in writing Reimagining Death. I found this book fascinating and learned so much -- there are so many possibilities for making the passage of death meaningful and personal/customized. The book focused on home funerals/vigils and green burials and provided many resources for further investigation. The biggest myth I corrected in my own understanding is that cremation is not an environmentally friendly or sustainable practice. But the beauty of this book is that it is filled with personal vignettes; many very, very touching pieces of writing. It was an intimate experience reading them. The most moving for me was Laurie Riepe's account of her experience with her husband's death with dignity. But there were many, many stories that drew me in and educated me about the possibilities, just as I was educated years ago about the possibilities for deeper meaning in childbirth -- once you work through enough of the resistance, fear, and pain, there is so much more available to allow in and witness.
May 9, 2023
The positives are persuasive:
- How we avoid the topic of death (we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.)
- The therapeutic advantages of home funerals.
- Logical alternatives to old school embalming, caskets, and headstones.
- The environmental damage of traditional burial and cremation.
I’m going with the green plan!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The case histories tend to go on and on, and thunder and lightning dramatization goes over the top.
Reading level: easy.
- How we avoid the topic of death (we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.)
- The therapeutic advantages of home funerals.
- Logical alternatives to old school embalming, caskets, and headstones.
- The environmental damage of traditional burial and cremation.
I’m going with the green plan!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The case histories tend to go on and on, and thunder and lightning dramatization goes over the top.
Reading level: easy.
May 4, 2019
I won this book via Goodreads giveaway.
I found this pretty intriguing as I didn't even know this sort of thing was an option when it comes to burial/end of life choices. This is way more up my alley than a bunch of money being wasted on setting my up in a stuffy formal funeral parlor. I'll be checking out the websites and other resource information in the book and seeing about talking my children into doing something like this for me when I die.
I found this pretty intriguing as I didn't even know this sort of thing was an option when it comes to burial/end of life choices. This is way more up my alley than a bunch of money being wasted on setting my up in a stuffy formal funeral parlor. I'll be checking out the websites and other resource information in the book and seeing about talking my children into doing something like this for me when I die.
June 4, 2021
Excellent - I did not finish this book as it's a deep, emotional topic for me. I definitely want to get back to it at a later point. I have purchased a grave site for myself, my husband and mother in a green cemetery and I have already buried my father's ashes there. I did not have the option of green burial for him as he passed away very far from home and transportation of his body was an issue, so we had him cremated. I however am adamant about green burials for many, many reasons.
April 1, 2024
I really enjoyed this book! I loved hearing about the different accounts on how others chose to honor their loved ones. Her own story of her mothers death and at home funeral was so beautiful and powerfully written. It also gave me some direction on how to best set up for my own eventual death so my wishes are honored. Embalming has never sat well with me and I’m very set in my plans after hearing about others who have chosen more natural burials as well.
August 2, 2019
While natural burials and home funerals are great ways to personalize the celebration of one's life, and be kinder to our environment, this book was pretty long-winded. I feel like it could have been shorter and more concise. I ended up skimming it.
December 11, 2019
If you want a collection of stories to help you imagine your own "good death" this is the book to get. Lucinda Herring has had years of experience in the death and dying realm and comes at it with a full and loving heart that is inspiring.
November 21, 2020
An excellent case for greener burial practices and home funerals. The author approaches this topic from a more spiritual perspective at times, but there is ample practical advice here, as well as some very good stories.
Read
January 5, 2021True value of an in-depth read, or listen. Conscious dying...,“When we bring art and beauty, meaningful ritual, and joy to ease our loss and sorrow, we are greening the gateway of death and returning home to ourselves, to the wisdom of our bodies, and to the earth.”
December 13, 2023
A good and informative handbook for death care. Facts and information about best practices are mixed with narratives from families who have handled death differently than traditional burials and cremations.
April 12, 2019
This book gives the reader a new way to look at death. I like that the Author discusses after death.
October 21, 2019
This book is inspiring and moving. Every word is valuable.
September 28, 2020
Must-read for anyone interested in planning their own or others’ vigils, home funerals, and/or green burials.
February 3, 2022
Definitely gave me a lot to think about.
September 2, 2022
Really important work and collection of resources with valuable stories and teachings that give the book structure. Learned a lot, felt a lot.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews