PORTLAND, Maine — The number of Mainers cremating their loved ones’ remains is going up.
Forty-four percent of deceased Maine residents were cremated in 2000. In 2010, the rate had grown to 64 percent, well above the national average of 41 percent.
The cremation rate in Maine is the sixth-highest in the U.S. and the highest in the eastern half of the country.
The Maine Sunday Telegram reported that there are a number of reasons for the growing numbers, including the lower cost of cremation, relaxed religious views and increased environmental awareness.
I think the biggest reason for more cremations is the high cost of a traditional funeral and the economy. Two thousand dollars versus ten thousand dollars is a big difference. It should not cost so much to bury our loved ones who are already suffering because of the death.
It makes good sense. A memorial place is a memorial place, or places, whether or not there are bones underneath. For better or worse, we will live on in the memories of those who knew us. When they’re gone, we become food for vital statistics, genealogical statistics, Mormon posthumous conversions, stories and myths.
“And so it goes” – Kurt Vonnegut