It’s not unusual for families to want something unique and beautiful for their dear departed. That’s why they are looking for funeral service ideas that really show how much the deceased means to them. And the effort put into it is indeed admirable; surely, anybody who lost a loved one would understand why they want certain things and images to symbolize their undying love for the special someone who is now in the afterlife. Usually, we see these in memorials as the gravestone, or at times, statues and sculptures that commemorate the dead.
A number of choices are available for people looking for tasteful images to put on a tombstone. It all really depends on what you’re trying to communicate, and the type of feeling you want to evoke. The rule of thumb is whatever feels natural, and what the family feels comfortable putting there. So here are a couple of ideas to get you started.
Putting a cross would rarely fail you. It’s probably one of the most used images, and maybe to make it unique would be to artistically design the cross so it comes out different and stands out. You can play with the overall design, the length and width of the image, the borders of the image as well as the edges. There are many combinations you can try, and it all boils down to your taste.
Next is a photo of the departed. Not just any photo but something in which the personality comes out, something that that person was well known for – so family, friends and even acquaintances would quickly relate, and of course easily remember the special times with that person. Some families would opt to further make this a bit more sophisticated, like placing the photo within another figure – like within a heart or some other stylistic geometric shape.
You may also like to consider putting two images together, side by side – or however you want to do the layout. Could be the cross and the photo side by side. Both enclosed by a heart, or something to the effect. You get the idea. Letting something beautiful come out from a combination of two images. One can get creative as one wants to, all while keeping it within the context of the effect desired. Probably a brainstorming session within the family would get the best result, and getting inputs from others would always result to something better than if one did all this on one’s own.
Other tombstone photo options include a flying bird. This usually symbolizes peace or could be the soul flying toward God. There could also be variations of this, like a bird with a leaf in its beak, or just a bird on a branch of a tree, or two birds together – there are many combinations and varieties for this. Depends entirely on the context and what one wants the image to mean. A safe choice is usually a dove with an olive branch in its mouth – definitely couldn’t go wrong with this option. But again, it’s entirely up to you. Go with what fits the situation, and the message you want the image to deliver.
Then there’s also the image wherein the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet are combined (alpha and omega symbols), which can be a biblical reference to Christ – meaning the beginning and the end. So putting this image on a tombstone could be interpreted as one’s belief in Christ is in the journey from the start of one’s life up until the end of it. Others also place this tombstone image to point out the reality of one’s life, and to recognize their faith in Christ as the Saviour – of the course, there’s that hope that the afterlife will be something beautiful, especially with the human’s return to Christ during death.
As you see, there are many choices to go about putting a tombstone image that’s just right for the situation. Indeed, the right memorial funeral service program and deciding on a tasteful image on the tombstone will be important things to carefully consider. But with the help of other family members, and then incorporating their inputs makes the whole process a lot easier. The important thing though is that the whole family makes the collective decision to come up with what’s best for their departed, and for those left behind.