Wakes are often associated with Irish culture, but have equivalents in other cultures as well. In Ireland, there are many customs associated with a wake, including stopping the clocks in the house and covering the mirrors.

Traditionally, the women in the household wash and dress the decreased, usually in white and perform keening, or mourning songs. Often, there is eating and drinking, prayer, games and reminiscing about the deceased.

A wake can be held in your local area of New Hampshire in a funeral home or in a relative’s home and is a chance for the friends and family of the deceased to pay their last respects for a passing friend or loved one.

The deceased is dressed in his or her best clothes and can be adorned with jewelry or watches, though these are removed before cremation. Frequently, visitors sign a book and include a short note about the deceased. Photographs of the deceased are also displayed. 

A common trend is to make a DVD of both the wake and funeral and copies of the DVD are passed out to those who want them. Most of the time, the casket in which the body is laid is open so people may view the deceased. Sometimes, the casket is closed at the request of the family or sometimes the deceased.

Wakes are a common practice with many cultures of the world, going back to ancient Ireland. It is a perfect time to reconnect with family and friends and remember the person who passed away during the family’s time of mourning.  The term wake is becoming somewhat antiquated.  Today, more frequently used terms are visiting hours, visitation, or celebration of life.

Before a cremation can begin, the funeral director must first obtain a legal document from the deceased’s family or next of kin in order to carry out the process. Next, items such as jewelry and medical equipment such as pacemakers must be removed from the body. The funeral director will place the body into a casket suitable for cremation or a cremation container which would be made of either wood or a type of pressed wood. Then the funeral director will bring the individual to the crematory.

Next, the crematory operator will place the casket or container into the cremation chamber along with identification tags to ensure the family will have peace of mind. This chamber is lined with special, fire resistant bricks as the average temperature can be as much as 2000 degrees Fahrenheit. The chamber is sealed and the machine is started. It takes about an hour and a half to two hours to reduce the body to primarily bone fragments, and an additional hour or two to let the temperature dissipate in order to handle the cremated remains.

The cremated remains are sifted through and any metal remaining such as screws, surgical pins and titanium limbs are removed by hand. The bone fragments are placed inside a special grinder which pulverizes them. The remains are placed inside a plastic bag and sealed inside a special urn or box before being returned to the family.

Cremation may seem like a complicated process, but in reality it isn’t. The loss of a loved one is extremely painful, and many people, for many reasons, decide to select this type of service.

References:

http://www.everlifememorials.com/v/urns/cremation-process.htm