by Linda Banks

 

Image: Heart by Kyra*

My grandma gave me a heart-shaped locket when I was little. I cut out tiny pictures of people and pets I loved to put inside. When my parents died I was 12. I put their pictures in that locket and never took it off. It helped me feel close to them and feel their love. That heart locket is still one of my favorite things, and today it holds my grandma’s picture. 

For centuries, the heart has been used to represent love. Scriptures, poetry and songs attempt to describe love that can only be felt by the heart. We are encouraged to follow our heart. Historically, the heart shape has represented many things. 

• The earliest drawings of hearts are attributed to Cro-Magnon hunters in Europe from before the last ice age. Archaeologists traced the symbol from 10,000 – 8,000 B.C. The meaning of the heart drawings is unknown. 
• The ‘Sacred Heart of Jesus´ was reportedly seen in a vision by Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque in 1673. The heart is referenced numerous times in the Bible and is depicted in Biblical art.
• Queen Victoria romanticized the heart as the symbol of love as we know it today.
• Valentine’s Day reportedly brings in $14.7 billion spent on hearts, cards, candy and flowers.
• In South Korea, heart-shaped cakes are exchanged for celebrations including weddings, anniversaries and births.
• Today, hearts are used on menus and in grocery stores to indicate heart-healthy food.
• Heart emoticons are popular notices of approval on social media apps on the internet.

Keepsake cremation urns and hearts

In reference to death, the heart symbolizes undying love. Many people incorporate hearts into their end-of-life plans. Couples choose cemetery headstones engraved with hearts to portray eternal love. 

I was thinking about my heart locket, and how deeply meaningful it was to keep it close to me. For those who choose cremation, heart keepsake cremation urns provide a similar way to keep a loved one close. They are designed to hold a small portion of cremated remains, and represent the love once shared and still felt. 

These mini keepsake urns can be used for several purposes. They work well when family members want to share the remains of a loved one. The ashes can be distributed into the smaller memorial urns for each member. When scattering ashes is the main choice to distribute the remains, a small portion is often kept in a miniature keepsake urn. Specific heart-shaped urns, such as the Arielle pet urn, are appropriately sized to hold a portion of a small pet’s cremated remains.

Keepsake urns are sometimes less expensive than the larger display urns. Many of the keepsakes have a matching full-size memorial cremation urn.

The small heart-shaped urns carry a magnitude of meaning when filled with a loved one’s ashes. They represent a dignified and genuine expression of lasting love.

*Image can be found here: http://bit.ly/25hEUOl

Linda Banks provided extended end-of-life care for her beloved Aunt who was like her mother. When her brother suddenly died, she was instrumental in orchestrating all of the details of his final wishes to be cremated. Linda has been an active blogger for ten years, including blogging about Willie Nelson and his family. Willie told her recently that he reads her blog every day.