7 Unique Memorials: Turning Grief Into Art, Ink, Trees & Stardust

Looking for meaningful or creative ways to honor and celebrate a loved one in the spirit world?

 In this episode, we explore 7 modern memorials that turn grief into art, creamain tattoos, trees, reef balls—even stardust.

From cremation jewelry and AI avatars to biodegradable burials and ashes-pressed vinyl records, these surprising and soulful practices may inspire you to reimagine how we say goodbye.

This powerful follow-up to our episode on historical mourning rituals dives into present-day ways people are honoring their loved ones—creatively, spiritually, and deeply personally. Some are quiet. Others are bold. All are rooted in love.

Whether you're grieving, pre-planning, or simply curious, this conversation offers comfort, options, and fresh perspective.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

🖋️ Tattoos made with cremation ash
🌳 Tree urns and mushroom burial suits
💎 Memorial diamonds and fingerprint jewelry
💻 Digital avatars, AI chatbots, & virtual cemeteries
🎧 Vinyl records and glass art infused with ashes
🌊 Ocean reef memorials & ashes launched into space
🎨 How to create personalized keepsakes from clothing and objects

✨ A must-listen if you’ve ever asked: Is there another way to honor someone I love?

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YouTube: Psychic Medium Joy Giovanni

Transcript

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Joy, hey, beautiful soul, welcome to spirit speakeasy. I'm Joy Giovanni, joyful medium. I'm a working psychic medium, energy healer and spiritual gifts mentor. This podcast is like a seat at the table in a secret club, but with mediums, mystics and the spiritual luminaries of our time. So come behind the velvet ropes with me and see inside my world as I chat insider style with profoundly gifted souls, we go deep, share juicy stories, laugh a lot, and it wouldn't be a speakeasy without great insider secrets and tips. You might even learn that you have some gifts of your own. So step inside the spirit. Speak Easy. Hey, beautiful soul, welcome back, or welcome in for another episode of spirit speakeasy. On this week's episode, we are going to be talking about seven unique memorials turning grief into art, ink, trees and stardust. If you've ever wondered about the more creative, unusual or deeply personal ways people are honoring their loved ones today, this episode is for you, from tattoos made with cremation ashes to digital memorials, reef balls and even space burials, we are exploring some of the most fascinating and soul stirring modern morning rituals happening in our world right now, after sharing the recent episode exploring unusual and sometimes taboo morning practices of the past, like post mortem photography, Victorian era hair, art and morning jewelry. I was flooded with curiosity and comments from listeners everywhere. And then it got me thinking, Are there any modern equivalents to these unusual Memorial practices that I haven't heard of or that most people haven't heard of, as you might imagine, in my work as a medium, I get to hear lots of unique and special and creative ways people memorialize their own loved ones who've crossed over to the spirit world. But we don't often get to talk about ways we're honoring and remembering our loved ones. Now, in many ways, some of these might feel a little unusual. They're definitely deeply personal, or some might even seem taboo to you. Even some of these grief, after all, is universal, but the way we express it really evolves with time, culture and even technology, as we'll talk about today. In this episode, we'll explore seven unique and meaningful ways people today are memorializing those they've lost, from tattoo ink infused with ashes to digital avatars and voice clones to reef balls on the ocean floor or ashes launched into space. Yes, that's a real thing. Today's morning tokens aren't always found in urns or under gravestones. They're found in creativity, in intention, in this idea of legacy. And the truth is, many of these options reflect not just how someone passed away, but how they actually lived and who they are in their personality and in their lives, they represent the lives they've led, the values they held, the things they loved or even dreamed about, whether it's a tree growing in their honor or a vinyl record that plays their voice, or maybe even a bear made from their favorite T shirt, each personal tribute tells its own special story. So as we explore these beautiful and sometimes bold ways of remembering, I invite you to just consider and ask yourself, what would feel most like the people that you love that you might lose one day and would want to memorialize and even maybe open your mind and heart to thinking about what kind of legacy do you want to leave behind? I do end up thinking about this quite a bit, probably just because, like I said, my work is a medium. I get to hear all of these wonderfully special and super creative ways that I didn't even know existed for memorializing people. So it really gets me thinking about how I might want to start preparing to memorialize, you know, my like my parents, for example, my dad, or what I might want to start thinking about setting up for my own adult kiddos one day. So let's dive right in the first of these seven that I want to share these creative ways to memorialize our loved ones are cremation jewelry and memorial stones. You'll see why I put this all under one heading together. In a way, wearing a keepsake of a loved one isn't necessarily a new idea, right, like we talked about in that last. Last episode, Victorians wore lockets with portraits or sometimes snippets of hair. Some indigenous cultures craft amulets with symbolic remains or personal items like bone or things that belong to the person. But now, technology has taken this idea even further into something dazzling, personal and honestly, this one can be a little controversial for some. One of the more elaborate versions is the memorial diamond. There are companies out there that will take a small amount of the cremated remains of your loved one. The cremains, usually it's said to be like about half of a cup. So not all of them, but just about half a cup's worth. And they put them through this high pressure, high temperature process that mimics the natural formation of diamonds. Like, if you've ever heard of a lab created diamond that they create in the laboratory for like an engagement ring. Well, they can now create these with the cremated remains of your very special loved one, and in just a few months, you receive back in the mail a sparkling gemstone that you can have sometimes they'll do it for you as part of this whole experience, but they they'll cut it, polish it, set it in a ring or a pendant or a bracelet, or however you'd like. And I want to point out that these stones aren't synthetic look alikes. They're chemically real diamonds, except instead of being mined from the earth, they are forged from the essence of someone you love in a laboratory. Some are clear. Others take on colors, like soft blue or yellow. I even have a client shout out. They know who they are. I have a client that has a lovely black diamond, which is so special and personal to the relationship with the loved one that it memorializes using that person's cremated ashes, a little bit of them, and it's just so personal and significant and is a beautiful representation and makes sense for them with their loved one. So they do come in colors that aren't just clear. And you can even choose the cut round or princess, which is the square cushion, which is the square with the edges softened. It becomes really your special experience and your ritual creating this. Another really sweet option that's growing in popularity is fingerprint jewelry. I've seen this quite a bit. It's it's actually really special, and people are getting more and more creative with it. So some people because getting the diamond is a little pricey. It's kind of up in that the last time I looked it up from some of the commercial websites that do it, it's a couple 1000 to several, many $1,000 but there's something that's a little less expensive. So some people are actually taking the fingerprint of their loved ones. So like, the actual fingerprint, whether it's captured from, like, hospital records, old documents and ink pads, some people think ahead to, like, do their fingerprints or leave their fingerprints behind. I've known people to do it kind of bedside with their loved one in hospice, just because they want to make sure they have it. So however you get the fingerprints, you can get them, and you can have that fingerprint, the actual swirl pattern, engraved into a charm, a necklace, a bracelet, a ring. It's very subtle and very beautiful, and it's really something special to carry that only you know is there. There's something deeply grounding about that texture too, because it has the actual ridges. It's not just the symbol. It's their actual touch, their imprint, their fingerprint, proof that they existed tangibly. Other versions of cremated remains jewelry are maybe more accessible. So I've even also seen little lockets or a tiny, little vessel, tiny little, you know, they also make them with like fairy dust. If you've ever seen those, like at Disney or at, you know, more theme parks, those little, tiny, tiny glass vessels that I've seen, people actually put a tiny bit of the ashes inside. I've seen it done in lockets that then can sometimes be sealed. I've seen beads like that you would make into a necklace or bracelet. The actual beads made from resin and a mixture of the ash that those cremain ashes or even glass pendants that have a swirl of the ashes, and those ashes are swirled into patterns to look like ocean waves or beautiful swirling Galaxy patterns. I've seen people wear these pieces on like full display, almost as if it's like a protective amulet and way to really hold their loved one over their heart. And I've seen others choose not to display them at all. Keeping them very private, either tucked away in a drawer, some of these you might be able to recognize, like the little, tiny vessels or vials of ashes. Others, the diamond that I've seen on a beautiful ring, you wouldn't even ever know that that's what it was. So there's something so intimate and special about this kind of morning. It's not just symbolic. It's like more embodied. It keeps a part of that person literally so close to your heart or your physical body. Of course, not everyone is comfortable with this. For some, the idea of using cremated remains, cremains in this way feels odd or unsettling. And of course, that's okay. Every grief is different. Every legacy needs to be honored in its own special way. But for those who feel called to it, cremation jewelry can be a way to kind of alchemize this loss into something tangible, something you can reach for when your heart is really hurting, or just on a daily basis, when you want to keep that loved one just really close over your heart, or kind of on your on yourself throughout the day. So I think the the creaming jewelry is a really cool option that I've seen increasing over the last few years. The second of these seven unique and creative ways to memorialize that I want to talk about is Memorial tattoos and ink infused with ashes. So these obviously go together, if you don't know why, you'll see as we go some memorials don't sit on a shelf or hang around your neck. Some can be literally carved into the skin, permanent, sacred, intentional Memorial tattoos are becoming an increasingly common way for people to honor their loved ones. It doesn't have to just be a name or a date anymore, like it used to be, I do have it come through in readings occasionally where the spirit person will let me know, oh, this person has a memorial tattoo of me, or they're thinking about getting a memorial tattoo, or several friends have matching tattoos. I even recently had a dad in the spirit world come through, and it was his daughter that was my client, and he was teasing and saying, she has a memorial tattoo for him, but it's hidden, and even if you saw it, you wouldn't know that it was for him, because it's a special symbol rather than his name or like a portrait photograph type tattoo of him. These tattoos are often deeply symbolic in this way, like in this example that we're talking about, where it's like something that even if you saw it, you wouldn't know what it was. You could choose their favorite flower, even like the flower of their birth month, a portrait of your beloved pet. I've seen some really cool pet portraits as memorials. You could choose a phrase that had meaning in your loved one's story or in their life, you can even choose, I've seen this recently, and it's so cool something in their handwriting, like if you had a greeting card from them, or if they left a note that you had saved, you could have the tattoo artist use that actual handwriting, or Even their actual signature from like a document or something which is really cool and just seems really special. You know, it could be even something as simple as, like, I love you forever, if you had from a note or a card. And of course, it could be a birthday or a significant number in, like Roman numerals or even regular numerals. You can tattoo their fingerprint. You can tattoo something privately significant, like a special symbol or a meaningful token that only the two of you would know, that honors this person, but those you might have already heard of, there is a really unique and powerful variation of this that is growing in popularity. So it's almost like this is taking this memorial tattoo idea to the next level. There are tattoo artists out there that are creating tattoos that are also made with cremation ash infused ink. So it's like the regular tattoo ink that you would use for any tattoo. And then certain tattoo artists that are trained to do this are infusing some of the ink with some of the cremated ashes. So actually some of that person's ashes are being needled in with the ink as part of the tattoo. So they their cremated remains are actually part of the tattoo itself. So in this process, essentially a small amount of cremated remains. In this case, it's said to be just like, about a teaspoon, just a little tiny bit. They sterilize it, they pulverize it, grind it really, really fine, and mix it into the tattoo. Doing, and then the tattoo is done. Business as usual, but with the added knowledge that you're literally carrying a piece of your person blended in as part of this tattoo. This is incredibly intimate for some. It feels almost like a spiritual experience, like their loved one is part of their blood, their body, their journey forward. These kinds of tattoos are sometimes placed, like over the heart. They could be placed on the wrist or forearm, anywhere that the wearer either sees them or feels like that's where they want to be connected. I've seen it where someone has it, like on their side, and it's because they're always beside them. I've seen it where they have it on their shoulder, and it's because they always have their back. So it's really having intention through all of it, even in the placement, and placing it somewhere that just feels like it makes sense for you as part of the way that you want to honor this person. Of course, this idea is not without controversy. Some people in the medical field raise concerns about the sterility of the ashes, like how hygienic is this? And not all tattoo artists, of course, are willing or even trained to work with this kind of ink, so it's important to do your research carefully, just like hopefully you would do with any tattoo, and work with someone who is experienced and who's really respectful of the emotional weight behind this type of tattoo and really has a dedication to the entire process of doing it the right way. And hopefully you could find someone that's trained or certified in this still, for those that choose this form of expression. This kind of tattoo isn't just about esthetics. It's about presence. It's about claiming a piece of your grief and transforming it into something incredibly sacred, not to be forgotten, but to be carried forward with us now, while Memorial tattoos bring a representation of love shared that can be displayed on the body itself. Not everyone feels called to something quite so permanent. You know, some people don't believe in tattoos for cultural or religious reasons or fear based or like they just scared of needles or don't want tattoos. So not everyone feels called to do something so permanent or so extreme as this, for some, the urge to create and make something with their own hands, that is, you know, forming something that represents their loved one or reminds them of them, can become just as much of the part of the healing. And just like everything, whether it's a tattoo or this next segment we're going to talk about, these expressions of remembrance aren't always public. They're not for everyone else. They're for you privately. So they're often quiet, soft, deeply personal expressions of our love for our person that's crossed over. They hold so much meaning, because sometimes the most powerful tributes are also the most personal. And in our next number three of these unique creative keepsakes, you will learn that some of the most powerful tributes are handmade. There's something about fabric that holds memory. Maybe it's, you know, the softness like of a really well worn, well loved t shirt for many years of use. Maybe it's something about the scent that still lingers, either on like the collar of a shirt, or the, you know, fresh scent of laundry detergent that we're used to with someone, the tiny hole in the elbow of their favorite sweatshirt because they really loved it and wore it so many times. Clothing becomes kind of part of our unspoken biography, of our lives. We all have those favorite pieces that we reach for, and some of us even have very special pieces that we think of someone wearing. You know, maybe you have a loved one that always wore a certain denim jacket, or the way you remember your grandma is particularly in floral 90s. For example, fabric really holds more meaning than just the article of clothing itself, right? That's why so many people are turning to handmade keepsakes crafted from their loved ones garments, which is number three of our unusual keepsakes, crafts from clothing and handmade memorials. So people use, obviously, their loved ones garments, whether it's a shirt or a pajamas or favorite sweatshirt as a way to keep their essence alive in something tangible, something that they can hold and be comforted by. And often this, this is like a functional item that is being creative. One of the most cherished forms of this is the memory bear maybe you. Heard of this. I actually have told a few clients about this idea recently, and they hadn't heard of it. So I wanted to make sure I included it. It's essentially a small stuffed like a teddy bear, like a child's bear, type of a bear, sewn with a loved one's clothing. Sometimes they're even made to be gifted to grandchildren or children after the loss of a parent or grandparent, but they hold just as much meaning for adults. So even if you're a grown up person, you can make these of your loved ones clothing or even blankets as well. The Bear might even wear like a special little bow made from your loved one's necktie, or have button eyes that the buttons came from a special flannel shirt or jacket or suit coat. It's something to hold close when that grief is really loud, or even just to keep around you as a way to continue to infuse your space with things that belong to this loved one. There are things like memory pillows. Sometimes those are made from shirts or dresses or bathrobes. Some families leave a pocket on the front. Like, you know how shirts have pockets, they make it where there's like a pocket on the front. And they can have that memory pillow and put the pocket of the shirt on the very front, and I've even seen it embroidered with really sweet phrases, like, you know, this is a shirt I used to wear when you hold it, you know, I'm there, or even embroidering their name, or monogramming their initials or something there, sometimes people choose to sew, like a swatch of fabric into A significant outfit. I've known people to do this for like a wedding dress, for example, or a marriage garment, right? That they one of their loved ones couldn't physically be there, mom or dad or someone really a brother, someone really significant, and they've taken a piece of that person's old t shirt or a significant piece of clothing and either cut it and sewn it into the lining or tucked it into a pocket. I knew someone that stitched a part of their mom's favorite blouse into like a military graduation outfit. They obviously the front has to look like it's has to look but no one knows what you have sewn just inside underneath. So there's lots of creative ways to do this, whether it's for a wedding or graduation, a christening or a ceremony of any kind. It's a special way to keep your loved ones near. Even the smallest touch can be a part of something bigger. Think about like those old fashioned patchwork quilts. You could make a quilt from favorite pajamas or button downs, and just take all of them and have pieces cut and sewn into like a big quilt. You could even have journal covers made from favorite pair of jeans or favorite flannel. You can make a wall hanging like a picture crafted from several ties or scarves, whatever that person has one client I spoke to, created a whole book of swatches of little cut out pieces of clothing and and she said that each piece of fabric, you know, she glued them each to a page. So just like you would a scrapbook or a memory book, and she wrote a little note, a memory about each piece of clothing, what it was a memory with it, what it carried, you know, the she did it like she did one for each of her parents, actually, is the way the story goes. And it was like a piece of her mom's ribbon, not ribbon apron that were the ribbon of the apron, because it had, like this really cool pattern on it. And she put that in there, and she wrote little note about like when they used to bake, and a little bit of a memory from that. So it can really be as personal and as elaborate as you want it to be. It becomes like this tactile legacy, a way to tell the stories of our loved ones with tangible items, not just words, these keepsakes, they're they're not necessarily expensive. If you're handy and can sew, you can make them yourself. I actually have also done some research. I have a quilt idea that I've always wanted to do for my own kids. And on websites like Etsy, there are other people's amazing grandmas will make these things for you. You just commission them and send them the things, and they will send it right back to you, so you don't even have to be handy yourself. Which made me really happy to know, because even though I love the idea of doing it, you know, we're all a little busy, so don't put it down to you just don't have time. There's other options. And you know, something that's stitched with love that we always can have with us ever close. So clothing can be made into all kinds of amazing things as really special, incredibly personal ways to remember. The fourth thing that I want to talk about here in our seven really. Special, unique ways that people are currently memorializing people is this idea of returning them to the earth, biodegradable memorials and natural burials. Okay? This one is for all of my earth lovers, my crunchy granola. Woo, woo, folks out there, I actually really like this one as well. We've talked about how grief can be worn or inked or stitched, but now sometimes some of the most sacred remembrances are about letting go. So in allowing the body to return to the earth, not to be hidden away, but woven back into the natural world, there are growing movements towards green and biodegradable burials, and within that, there are some really thoughtful, even poetic, beautiful options for memorializing loved ones. Let's start with some that you might have heard of now. They are making biodegradable tree urns. So essentially, it's a special urn container that is a combination of a portion of the cremated remains, those cremains with a young sapling, like a young tree. And usually it's tucked into a compostable pod. So as this pod breaks down, the roots of the tree grow through the ashes and transform what was, you know, the cremains of a loved one, this really heavy grief and loss, into something literally alive and beautiful. Some families choose to plant these trees in their own backyards. Others use designated Memorial forests. So there are plots of land that instead of being like a cemetery where people are buried, it is a memorial forest where lots of these eco, biodegradable trees are planted with cremains. So that's another way to do it, another option where multiple family members can, you know, be placed all together, if you like. It's a really powerful symbol of this circle of life, and that love doesn't end, it just continues to grow in a different way. So you might have heard of that one. There is a maybe more intimate, organic approach that is called the mycelium burial suit. This is also, in a, like a pop culture kind of a way, sometimes called a mushroom death suit. I think that's just for click bait. Essentially, it's a full body garment, like a suit that you would wear laced with a special fungus, fungi designated or designed to break down the body naturally. So it's literally some sort of mesh suit that has mushrooms, fungi, fungus laced into it that will break down your body naturally. The mycelium neutralizes toxins and supports new growth in the soil, creating a clean return to the earth without about embalming chemicals, creating imbalances in the earth or leeching heavy metals into the earth. Some people see this as a final act of environmental stewardship. Others view it spiritually, almost, as an offering back to the planet that held them and sustained them. You might also hear about something called natural shroud burials. This is essentially where the body is wrapped in simple cloth made from natural fibers like cotton or wool or linen, and laid to rest without a casket or a vault. I was wondering if it was going to get loud down here, I closed all my windows just to try to mitigate some of this noise. But as you guys know, I live in a kind of a downtown area, and it gets a little bit crazy. So sorry about that. Let's get back to these shroud burials. So the body is wrapped in simple cloth, right, natural fibers, cotton, wool, linen, and it is laid to rest with no casket. So in some cases, people might plant herbs or flowers and kind of tuck them all around the person and plant them on top. It's really humble and intentional and beautiful. There are also these really cool things at sort of a next level of that, which is called wildflower meadow burial. So this is a burial that takes place in a natural meadow, resting amongst wildflowers and native grasses and wild blooms growing freely all around you. These natural cemeteries often skip headstones and instead, loved ones receive GPS coordinates to mark the spot where they were placed. Over time, the grave becomes just part of a landscape, living, breathing memorial in a field of wildflowers. I really love these options, and I think they're really beautiful. I want to give a quick. But important note here, you guys hopefully start to know how my mind works with this one, all of these options, the tree urn, the mycelium suit, the shroud burials, the Wildflower burials. They're all legal in many places, but these aren't allowed everywhere. Burial lawns can vary from state to state, not lawns laws, sorry. Burial laws can vary from state to state, obviously, like you might imagine, and even between cemeteries, like one cemetery might allow certain things and another might not allow so just make sure that you're checking in some locations might require things like special permits or to be placed in a special area, some might require the involvement of like a funeral, funeral director or someone to certify that you're doing it properly. Natural burials are often easiest to arrange through like a green, certified or conservation type cemetery, but private land burials might be possible depending on zoning laws, wherever you are. So if you're drawn to these types of Earth honoring final restings and goodbyes, it's a great idea to check with your local regulations or to speak with a green burial provider in your area. Each of these choices brings focus back to the natural cycle, which is part of what I love about it, this birth, death, rebirth, regeneration, transformation, and they ask us to really view our passing, not as a vanishing, but as a continuation, a transformation, a gift. There's no right way to say goodbye, but for those who feel called to honor the body's sacred return to Earth, these earthly memorials offer kind of a grounded beauty, one that speaks to the soul, to the soil, to the stars. So I really like those kind of nature, Earth burials. Number five on the list I want to share with you of these new fangled, unusual ways to memorialize is digital. Afterlives mourning in the age of technology, so grief, back in the day, used to live in diaries, where people would just write their feelings. We might have had some photo albums. We might have had some quiet, private moments with low lights and sitting with our memories. But now in current day, in the lives of cloud space and playlists and timelines that continue long after someone has passed, technology's really opened up a whole new world for mourning and remembering, a world where legacy and memory aren't just preserved, but sometimes reimagined. And for many people, it starts really simply. So you may have heard of this, but a lot of people are doing memorialized social media pages, and when you're doing your will and your documents, there are even additional documents and settings within some of these platforms called Legacy settings, that you can assign someone to take over your account in the event of your passing, and they could keep your account alive as like a memorial place where people can I've seen these on like Facebook or Instagram. Let me know if you've seen these. There's often an option to memorialize the account after someone's passed, so the account sometimes can be frozen, but still visible, and friends and family can still leave messages. I have someone that they did this for several years ago, and many people will go on every year and wish him a happy birthday on his birthday, which is fun and lovely, and I think it means something to the family that's left behind people. Sometimes I've seen this. I just was talking to a mom about this the other day who has a kiddo, a grown kiddo in spirit, and this kiddo had a social media page, and the friends after this person's passing continue to share photos and memories and things that the mom hadn't seen or had access to. So these social media pages can make really beautiful Memorial pages, Memorial places. We can tag photos and leave messages and send love to the family. So it becomes kind of a virtual headstone, if you will, a place to visit, especially on holidays and special days, right? But did you know that there's also something called an online Memorial website, and they even have guest books. What do I mean? There are websites specifically designed to honor a loved one's memory. So instead of it being run by a social media account or page, this is like your own website, like anyone can create a web page, a website, it might have a timeline of their life, details about the different phases of their life to really share with everyone who loved them. It could include things like people that wrote, not only the obituary, but like biographies or letters to them, kind words to them. You know, sometimes a lot of people might like to speak at the memorial service, but we only want family to speak, or there's only a limited time. This is a great way for other people to share their words of love and remembrance, maybe don't have time to speak out like a memorial service. This can also be another place where people can share photos and videos and even like voice recordings or voicemails that they might have of this person. And you can even create it or have it created again. For those of you that aren't crafty, I would need to have someone create this. For me, you can have someone set up a digital guest book where friends and family who visit the website can not only share stories and videos, but can leave a note that they were there, or could leave a holiday note or a birthday note, or could even just share what's going on with them. So this is a nice way to use technology to keep an ongoing memorial page. You can also use AI chat bots that are trained on texts and emails. Okay, this one is a little out of the box, but I think you'll see this is kind of where we're going. And you know, technology for all of its challenges and all of the frustrating parts of it, there are some really beautiful ways that we can use some of this new, up and coming technology to help us with our grief, to support us and to help us memorialize our most cherished loved ones. Some tech companies are now offering services where you can upload to their platform a person's messages, whether it's like text messages, email messages, social media posts, and create essentially a chat bot that mimics how this person spoke or wrote or responded to things so where you may have seen or heard of it is they do it where it's kind of like a dating or a friend chat bot, and it becomes like your friend, and you talk to it, and it talks to you, and it gives you advice, and it's like your friend. Some people are using them as more of like a dating type companion. Well, this is very similar to that idea, but it's based on your loved one things they would say, their comments, their texts, their messages, if you've got voicemails, I'm sure it would take that video clips, that kind of a thing, so you can train this bot to have conversations with you and respond as your loved one would respond. Now the next level of this is using technologies like voice cloning and AI generated audio messages where the AI is using a clone of your loved one's voice to generate audio messages. And instead of like text talking where you're writing back and forth, it's actually verbally speaking out loud to you in the voice of your loved one with enough audio samples. I don't think it can do it from like one or two voice samples, but if you had saved like several voice memos from them, or several voicemail messages, or had videos of them where they were talking or lives or different, you know, different things that captured voice samples, old video clips. AI can now recreate a person's voice. This technology is being used to do things like create a special birthday message or graduation message, special event message for a person from their loved one that's passed it can record a bedtime story for your kids. If you know their parent or grandparent is passed away, it can offer encouragement after they're gone. So if there's like a pep talk that you would want, you can have that created. Some people are actually planning these in advance, meaning giving an advance recordings or creating the ability with voice cloning, like giving lots of samples of their voice while they're still here, while they're still verbal, so that surviving family members can create This and an even next level of that is using AI avatars and sort of like a deep fake video type of memorial. So it's kind of like using these deep fake tools for good, for something beautiful. So there are a few companies. I have a feeling it's going to keep growing. There'll be more and more before we know it. But there are a few companies already that create highly realistic avatars that look and sound like the person who has crossed over. These avatars, or characters can be programmed to deliver a message or to appear in a short video using kind of like a deep fake type technology, which mimics. Express their voice, their face, their expressions, the way that they would express emotionally. This is one of the most advanced and highly controversial Memorial options. And as part of this, what this is expanding into is essentially being able to use these kind of deep fake memorials in an augmented reality, or like those QR headset things, or even having a QR headstone. So there are some modern cemeteries and companies that either can take a QR code, like the thing we use to get our menu at the restaurant, that thing you scan with your phone, so they can have one of those for your loved one, like a headstone, and they can place it either on an actual, literal headstone. They can place it on a tree, on a plaque, on a memorial bench, or marker. And when someone is coming to pay their respects or wants to visit, they scan the QR code and it leads them to your custom Memorial website where you share about your person, those avatars that I was talking about that can make, like the deep fake video and talk to you. They're starting to be able to use them through those AV like those headphone Virtual Reality VR headphone things, I think I'm using all the wrong initials for these things. I'm not the most techie, as you guys know, so these augmented reality memorials can be a part of our experience. You can point your phone at a location and see a photo or a video of the loved one layered into that space, like a slideshow or like a tribute. There are even virtual cemeteries and digital worlds that have Memorial places. There are entire websites built as virtual cemeteries, and you can create a memorial virtual plot. You can design the space, you can upload photos and memories. You can invite others to visit and leave messages using their virtual reality avatar. So we're getting very, very Ready Player One, for those of you that remember that game where we can be going to someone's cemetery to to honor them in a virtual setting where we all put on those glasses and and head to a cemetery without leaving our house to memorialize someone together. Some of these are said to mimic peaceful gardens and paths, and some of them are more like social networks, where people can, kind of spray paint walls and share however they want. So very interesting way of doing it. Not all digital morning is high tech, though. There are some lower tech ways. So now that that's like the high of the high of the tech side of of things with the avatars that will actually speak to you using your loved ones voice pattern. There are some that are simpler, if that is way out there for you. You can even just keep old text threads and voicemails and revisit them when you need them. You can save playlists that belong to your loved one, or you can create a playlist that has their favorite music on it. You can light a virtual candle online, or write an annual birthday post or even a letter if you're a fairy analog. You can use things like Pinterest boards or digital album albums to create a really sacred space or sacred ways to remember them. You can even send a message in an old group chat just to keep that thread going. I have some people that I know that had a whatsapp thread, like a family chat, and they keep that going even without their one of their loved ones in it because they didn't want to start a new chat. These might seem small, but they're really personal, and they hold space for someone, even when they can't hold it physically. We're continuing to hold this space in our lives for them, and in a way, the Internet has become our modern altar, if you will, a place where memories linger and presence echoes and things move very quickly, but we continue to share, and it raises so many questions as part of this too, what kind of legacy are we each leaving, and how do we want to be remembered? And what does presence mean now, in this digital world, it seems like it's going to go well beyond our actual physical presence. So there's so much to think about. The next of these seven unique ways of creatively memorializing your loved ones is this idea of turning ashes into art, sound and sky, transforming your grief through creativity. For those lucky enough to have ashes. Of your loved ones. You can do these or you so you could use ashes if you have ashes, but you could also use ashes of their personal items, like their shirts or papers. You could safely fire safety. You could safely burn their papers or some of their items to have ashes if you don't have cremate ashes, or you feel like that's creepy and too far for you and don't want to do it. But I think these ideas are actually really beautiful. I'm so curious what you guys are going to think of these, this sixth idea, or way of memorializing, as I think we could all agree on, not everyone wants their memorial to feel somber or depressing. Some people want to be remembered in vivid, lively, unexpected ways, and more and more people are choosing to turn their ashes into something creative, like we were talking about with the different types of jewelry and different things you can do that way, with tattoos, different, creative, expressive, even celebratory ways that people are wanting to use their ashes to be remembered. These memorials aren't about being quiet and somber in the shadows. They are about that spark movement, meaning doing something bigger. Have you ever heard of someone using their ashes and turning them into fireworks? That's right, this is real. Some companies will take a portions of your a portion of your loved ones cremated remains, and mix them into custom fireworks. Yes, families can choose the colors, and you can even choreograph the display of fireworks to music, just like I keep thinking of Disney, just like a theme park has the colored fireworks and there's a music and a light show. You too can have this with your loved ones ashes included as part of the fireworks. How interesting is that it becomes a send off in the sky, an explosive tribute, bursting with light and emotion. For some families, especially after sudden loss or someone particularly young that's crossed over, this can feel like a really fitting way to honor a life lived brightly, even if it was brief. Another thing that people are doing with ashes is pressing them into vinyl records. How interesting is this creative option? You can have your ass, yours or someone else's. You can have your ashes pressed into a vinyl record. You can choose the music. You can choose spoken messages, like a recording of you reading or speaking. You can even personalize recording to be etched into the grooves of the record. For those of us that are old enough to have had a record player or a family that had one, you know those grooves that are on that plastic disc. The vinyl record has the music inside of it, so they will put on there whatever you want. And the ashes are also infused into the vinyl, and then it's pressed into whatever the pattern is going to be for the music. So every time you play it, you're hearing a piece of their story with their presence literally embedded in the sound, because their ashes are literally embedded in the vinyl. It is part nostalgic and part ritual, and for music lovers, it can be incredibly powerful. Another option here is ashes blown into glass or sculptures. Artists around the world are now creating custom glass pieces that incorporate the cremated ashes into molten material that molten glass. Those of us that are old enough to have enjoyed Mr. Rogers, there were lots of things on PBS when I was a kid showing how glass is blown. So in that hot, molten liquid, they mix some of the cremated ashes inside, and it's incorporated in and as a result, when they blow or create the glass shapes or sculptures, it the ashes look like beautiful ocean orbs. They can make it into paper weights or holiday ornaments. They can even make it look like swirls of galaxies by including other like glitter or other material. They can make it into a vase or candle holder. They can even make them into crystal pendants or anything that you can make, artist glass into, you can make it into. Some artists even make beautiful abstract sculptures, if you've ever seen like beautiful abstract glass sculptures or other shapes. Others are shaping the glass into like hearts or birds or flowers. But what matters most is the. Intention, taking something that was left behind of our loved one and turning it into something beautiful that we can hang on to. Some people are also doing how we talked about the the ink used for tattoos being infused with the ashes. Some people are using ash infused paint or ink for artist projects, like not necessarily tattoo projects, but in some cases, people are using loved ones ashes to mix custom paint or ink and then creating painting, journaling art, calligraphy pieces, pen and ink pieces. It's rarely public art. This is intimate, usually, you know, kept private and for the family alone, but it's something that lives on in our homes or in our most intimate spaces that is gifted quietly within the family. And again, you could create these with if you didn't have the cremated remains of the person, you could use other ashes, something of theirs, if you wanted, or even just to create it significantly for them. You could create a super simple version of this as a like a photo collage with just photos of them that represent your own personal memories with that person. Or, like a shadow box where the glass is raised out, putting little special remembrances, mementos, items, ticket stubs, whatever you have to create, like a memory shadow box for that person, if you don't have the cremated ashes, each of these options is about transformation, not just preserving the memory, but giving it movement, color, form, life in a different way, taking grief out of the shadows and into our emotional, artistic expression. It's a reminder that love can be loud and remembrance can be a dance, and even the heaviest goodbyes can carry sparks of light. This last seventh idea that I want to share with you is a really wild one for creative and unique ways that people are remembering their loved ones now in present day, this is ocean and space memorials returning ourselves to the elements. Some goodbyes feel just too big for a casket, too cosmic for just a simple gravestone, for those who feel drawn to the elements or to the ocean, to the stars, to the infinite, there are memorials that reach beyond Earth into something much larger. These are just creative. They're symbolic. They're a way of saying this person's spirit couldn't be contained, and neither will their memory be just what am I talking about? Just for fun, also, these are really luxury items, luxury memorials. So I included the price ranges just for funsies on this one, because these ones, like I said, are quite literally out there. So the first one is reef ball memorials. You heard that right reef, as in coral reef under the ocean ball, like an actual round ball. These run 2500 to 10,000 ish US dollars in us, coastal waters. They are done not everywhere in us, coastal waters, just a few places, and especially in Florida, one of the most beautiful and environmentally conscious options is turning ashes into reef balls. These are specially designed concrete structures that are placed on the ocean floor to create new habitats for marine life. So if you've ever watched any type of discovery, Nat Geo channel, and you are watching them restore the coral reefs, and how they put, you know, big chunks of cement so that Earth life can rebuild on there. It's like that, only in that concrete is infused the loved ones, cremains or ashes. So it's mixed in there. The cremated remains are mixed in there, into the reef structure, and then that is submerged into protected marine sanctuary waters, and reefs grow over time. Coral attaches itself, fish gathers. It's a whole living ecosystem, and it begins to thrive because of and around the memorial, some families choose to hold a boatside ceremony during the placement, like when they're putting that cement piece down. Others return later, some snorkel or dive to visit the wreath. It's not just a legacy. It is a gift to the planet. Okay? Space burials and celestial ash scatterings. You might have heard of scattering someone's ashes at the park or in the mountains? No, no. This is scattering them in space. This will run yet 2500 to 15,000 US, and for those who want to look up instead of down, there's the sky space. Burials involve launching a small capsule. Maintaining a portion of cremated remains into orbit. The capsule may remain in Earth's atmosphere temporarily. It might burn up like a shooting star or even be sent into deeper space, depending on the chosen service. It's not science fiction. This is very real, and for many, the idea of becoming Stardust again, of literally returning to the cosmos, feels like a poetic closing of their circle. Some families pair this with nighttime viewings or telescope vigils. Others simply find comfort in looking up, knowing that a part of their person now rides the stars. There's also something called Sky scatterings and balloon releases with caution. This is on the lower end. So this is about 500 to about 4000 US dollars. There are also aerial scatterings, which ashes are released from planes or hot air balloons. So think of like a little plane, or like a literal Wizard of Oz hot air balloon over mountains or oceans or scattered through landscapes, and although balloon releases, like letting go of your own, mylar balloons, like you would get at the grocery store or the dollar store, those are really out. We're not allowed to do those anymore due to environmental concerns. It really messes with airplanes and helicopters. It can hurt the birds and things that fly. It is littering. It's really dangerous. These sky scatterings by aircraft are still offered and can be deeply symbolic, especially when located near something that had meaning for the person that passed. If you feel like the celestial ones are really interesting, but you don't feel like that is in your budget. You can also go online and name a star after a person. They can be a crossed over person, or they could be a living person. You could pick yourself. You can name a star after yourself right now on certain websites. So and that is much lower cost. I want to say it's like at most a couple $100 US. So that is also an option if scattering your ashes in the celestial ethers is feeling a little out there. Wah, wah. So those are some of these other options. These elemental memorials speak to something kind of ancient in us, a desire to let go with intention, to honor the mystery, the majesty and the vastness of where we came from and where we'll ultimately return to, whether it's a coral reef or cosmic dust for you, the message is the same, you're not gone. They've just become part of something greater. It's really all in all of the seven of these creative ways that people are moralizing their loved ones in present day, it's really all about creating a soulful, unique send off for your loved one the ways we remember are as varied as the people we love. Some are very private and some are very public. Some are stitched, some are launched into orbit, and while not every option we explore today will resonate with everyone, I hope this episode opened your heart to the incredible range of what's possible when it comes to honoring a life and navigating loss, because mourning isn't just about grief. It's about continuing the connection, continuing the love that we share, just in a different way. It's about creating something meaningful, personal, true to them and true to you, maybe even true to the relationship you shared. So whether you find comfort in a soft, squishy Memorial bear made of your loved one's favorite t shirt or a whispered voicemail played from time to time, or a tree made with their cremains rooted in their name, know that the ritual of remembrance is powerful medicine for us as human beings. It transforms loss into legacy, and maybe most importantly, it reminds us that love, when honored with intention, never really disappears. It simply changes form until next time. Beautiful soul, thank you for listening. Thank you for being here with me this week, and for carrying the memories of your loved ones forward in your own sacred way. Let me know if any of these have sparked curiosities or intentions in you, or if there are some unique Memorial traditions that I haven't shared yet, that you want to share with me so I can spread the word to more people. You can always email me joy at joyful medium.com or you can also email admin at joyful medium.com if you've got a story to share, I'm still collecting sign stories if you want to share. One of those, you can do that as well. I hope you are finding really special ways to honor yourself and to create new memories as you go through the rest of your summer. Big hugs. Lots of love. Bye for now. From inside spirit speakeasy, you