Skeleton Keys

I was reading about the man who got a teapot made out of his father's ashes. Now every time he has a cup of tea, his father will be there. Until he drops the teapot, of course.

This kind of thing is getting increasingly popular - you can have your loved one's ashes turned into diamonds, or whatever.

What I don't understand is this: If you want to use their remains to make something, why bother to turn them into ashes first?

Putting the remains of a cremated person into the grinder.
Along with some cigarette ash too, by the looks of things...

Wouldn't it be less destructive and more personal if his father hadn't been cremated? He could have had a teapot made out of his skull, and perhaps a set of cutlery out of his bones.

This is all much more environmentally friendly than burning people, and uses up less space than burying. No, in the future recycling will be the thing to do. This is very much in keeping with religious traditions as well - after all, the bones of saints are often revered.

It's also sort of in keeping with much older traditions, where people carved things out of bone.

I've given it some thought, and I'm considering suggesting that my bones get used to make the keys on a grand piano. There are two reasons for this: Firstly, it's probably the only way I'm going to get a decent tune out of a piano, and secondly, it'd be nice after a fairly selfish and uneventful life to be able to play a part in making people happy.


What about you?