Have others tried writing a letter to a deceased loved one?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/feb/05/letter-to-my-late-son-who-had-schizophrenia

Have others tried writing a letter to a loved one who has passed on? And, if so, did it help? This is a sad letter to read, and you can only hope that the mother who wrote it has found the process therapeutic in some way.

Cochester Cemetery in Essex tell mourners to remove 'cheap trinkets'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1352498/Poundland-cemetery-Colchester-council-bans-ornaments-graves.html?ITO=1490 The article linked here, from the Daily Mail gives you the opportunity to vote with your view!

A Cemetery in Colchester in Essex is putting it's foot down, and asking that mourners behave in a more 'dignified' manner, and remove an abundance of toys, trinkets, and adornments they have placed in the cemetery to mark their loved ones graves.

Do you think this is reasonable, or is it a local council being bossy and insensitive to the wishes of mourners?

Council to save money – and combat global warming – by heating a swimming pool using heat generated by crematorium

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/jan/24/crematorium-heat-swimming-pool-redditch?INTCMP=SRCH

Redditch Council in Worcestershire reckon they could save nearly £15K a year, by using the heat generated from the crematorium incinerators, next door to their new Abbey Stadium sports centre.

Who thinks this is a good idea? Or is such a (relatively!) small amount of money not worth saving, at the risk of people feeling the whole idea lacks respect for the recently departed ...?

LOSS - word in pictures

Found on today's Guardian website, these pictures illustrate loss - not always in relation to a death. Poignant and beautiful. Do look at them.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/gallery/2011/jan/29/readers-pictures-loss

Suicide partners found each other on the internet

Last week the UK news channels reported the suicide deaths of two people who had linked up via the internet. They had apparently swapped information about how to commit suicide and then met and died together in a car. This seems like an incredible use for the internet to most people - but what do YOU think about this? How do you feel when you hear a story like this hitting the headlines? Do you think that the internet should be more restricted when it comes to how people are now using it for activities which in the past would have seemed impossible not to mention taboo.

Death Tax

There is a lot of comment around today about the possibilities of the Labour party bringing in a Death Tax! Sounds pretty horrible, even if the details seem to be far from finalised.

What do you think?

Is a death tax the answer to the issues around care for the elderly and infirm in our society?

Sudden death, or terminal illness

I am interested to know of your experiences - either having lost a loved one very suddenly, or lived in the knowledge that someone close to you was, or maybe is dying. Please comment, anonymously of course if you prefer, to get across feelings - or any other information about how you dealt with, or are dealing with one of these death situations. For example, is it true that when you are living with someone you know is dying, that you do much of your grieving 'up front'; or how does coping with terminal illness affect later memories of that person? And with sudden death - do you feel there are long term effects which maybe are not apparent (perhaps due to shock?) at the time of death, with later cause a reaction?

Thank you to those who feel able to share their experiences here.