After the farewell, it becomes quiet. A memorial candle comes home with you and gives the memory a place. About missing someone, personal light rituals, and the life that goes on for us.
What is it that makes us so sad when a person or an animal dies?
When I think about it, the little things come to mind. A familiar look. The joy we shared. This unspoken feeling of having a home in one another.
And then that togetherness is gone. That tender familiarity.
We have to say goodbye so often in life. To our mother, our father, our partner, a friend, a beloved animal. Sometimes to a child whose life barely had a chance to begin – a star child. Then all the moments we had hoped for are also gone.
Every goodbye is different. And every time, a life that must go on is changed, even though so much has come to a standstill.
And I am still in the middle of life
I am the one who lives on.
Phew. Just that sentence.
While I still have to come to terms with the fact that you have died, I have to make decisions. Inform people. Look for documents. Find your last will – if you wrote one. Prepare a farewell.
I hold your past life in my hands and am supposed to do something with it, while mine has just fallen apart.
A memorial candle to accompany the farewell
Others are also shaken. They want to offer their condolences, say something, give something. A condolence card, flowers, or a wreath express: We are thinking of you. We remember with you.
Perhaps your funeral director will present you with a classic memorial candle with mourning fabric as a small gesture of sympathy. Perhaps it already shone at the funeral service.
A light for you. And at the same time for us, those who are left behind.
The farewell service is over. Gradually, it gets quieter. The others drive home.
After the funeral service: a memorial light for home
And I come home – without you!
I have the candle with me, the one that already burned at the farewell. The flowers stay at the grave. This light now stays with me.
When I relight it, I also remember our shared farewell: Oh yes, this light was there. It was beautiful how we said goodbye. Thank you for that.
Your things are still here. Your clothes. All the things that just a moment ago were part of our everyday life. Someday I will put some away, pass it on, change it. I don't know yet when I will be ready for that.
The candle gets a place. Its place.
A small memorial place, perhaps with a photo or an object that I associate with you.
How strange it is: Your body is no longer there. You no longer need the space in our home like before. But my heart needs room for you. For our closeness, my longing, for everything I carry within me.
So much emotion in this small space.
I light the candle. Here I am allowed to miss you. Tell you something. Hold my own hand and cry. Be shaken, empty, raw. Or simply be still.
What if the memorial candle burns out?
Someday its wax will be less. Perhaps that will frighten me.
What do I do when this candle is also used up?
I am allowed to keep its remains and light another light beside it. I am allowed to design a second candle. Later a third.
Perhaps now I want to think myself about what my next memorial light should look like. The first candle was given to me, a sign of sympathy in the first difficult hours. This new one can emerge from my own memory.
Designing a personal memorial candle
What were you like? What color belongs to you? What tells the story of our life? How do I want to remember you?
Even this reflection can be a form of grief support. I am allowed to tell stories, choose, design, or ask someone to turn my thoughts into wax.
A name, dates of birth and death, a personal dedication, or a familiar symbol can become part of this candle. Perhaps a color reminds me of you. Perhaps I only want a few words that have meaning for both of us.
A candle emerges from the life that once was. From what of it still lives on in me today.
The first candle accompanied our farewell. The next can emerge from my memory.
In my workshop, I design personal memorial candles and remembrance lights for this very place of memory – for people who are missing, and also for beloved animals.
When a whole life suddenly fits into a few words
Your name. Two dates. One sentence.
On a candle, a wreath ribbon, later on a stone.
So few words for a whole life.
Where are your laughter, your quirks, our stories? The moments when we were simply together, without looking at the clock? In joy and also in sorrow?
A life does not fit on this small surface. But a sign can open a door to memory. I see it – and remember again what you were like.
With my dog Ruby and my grandmothers, there is this warm feeling: It was good. It was wonderful that we had each other.
A place, an object, an everyday action reminds me. Sometimes tears come immediately. Sometimes a smile. Often both.
No one replaces this connection. It belongs to my life.
Grief rituals – a look into the world
When I see how other people and cultures deal with death, it touches me. There are quiet forms of remembrance and those full of colors, music, and shared stories.
I don't have to adopt every custom for myself. But I appreciate these different ways. They show me how much we humans search for a way to live with loss.
Perhaps a light stands in the window. For some, associated with the hope that the deceased will find their way home. For others, a greeting, a visible thought: You are missed. You belong to us.
This image touches me too. And at the same time, I feel the pain: I wish for your real return. Your closeness, your body, your voice.
Then perhaps someone who knows this feeling will help me…
In the midst of my own pain, connection emerges again. We tell stories about each other and about those who are missing. Listen. Remember together.
And when is my end?
The death of another also raises questions about my own life.
When will I go? What will remain of me then? Have I prepared anything?
My grandmother had planned her funeral, created a folder, and made arrangements. That made many things easier for us back then. We could read what she had wished for.
Perhaps I too want to organize my documents, record my wishes, and talk to my relatives. To deal with a power of attorney and a living will. To say out loud what is important to me.
Whether everything will come like that one day, I don't know. But I can prepare something today and give the people who accompany me some guidance.
And I am allowed to ask myself: What else do I want to tell them now? What do I want to take time for while I am alive?
Here I am. Here a light burns.
What comes after death, I don't know for sure. Where our soul is, whether and how something of us lives on – people hold different hopes and ideas about that.
I am allowed to have my questions.
And then I return to this little light. Feel my feet on the ground. My hand in my hand.
Here I am. I live.
The candle does not take away my loss. But it gives my memory a visible place. It can accompany me when I am sad, and shine when I look back with gratitude.
Today this candle. Later perhaps another.
For you. For our time together. And for me, who lives on with all of it.
A flame between earth and heaven.
What would your memorial light tell?
If you like, tell about it in the comments. Or discover my memorial candles and personal remembrance lights and look at your leisure which light suits your memory.
Your Dinah
For funeral directors: condolence candles as a lasting gesture of sympathy
They accompany families through the first difficult hours and help them create a personal farewell. A classic memorial candle with mourning fabric can make this accompaniment visible beyond the funeral service.
In our candle shop, funeral homes receive pre-designed condolence candles that they can present to the bereaved as a gesture of sympathy. At home, the light gets its own place and also reminds of the farewell created together.
If later the desire for an individually designed memorial candle arises, relatives can choose a suitable light themselves or discuss their personal wishes with us.
Would you like to order condolence candles for your funeral home? Contact us for a collaboration. Feel free to tell us the desired quantity and your needs – we will discuss the options with you personally.
Please only let candles burn under supervision on a fireproof surface. Remove mourning fabric and other flammable decorations beforehand and keep sufficient distance from flammable objects.