A PLACE for mourning, or remembering the memory of those who passed on, funeral homes can’t help but give off a creepy vibe. Despite the fact that the job description of people working in funeral homes entails them to work during the worst part of people’s lives, as friends and families grieve, there are a few things that stay hidden behind closed doors and are not known to most of the living. Here are a few things behind the funeral parlors that groom those who leave for the next chapter of their lives.
NAP IN PEACE. People working in funeral homes are still regular workers and as death knows no time, they often have shifts beyond the regular working schedule. They also take breaks between projects and sometimes, they take naps and sleep beside the dead inside the morgue. In an interview, a mortician said that they sleep beside the dead when they need to because the dead are nothing to be afraid of as they were once just like us, living and breathing.
FOCUS ON THE EYES. In grooming the dead, it is important to give them that seemingly “just sleeping” look. The eyes are not taken out unlike the other organs inside the body, but the eyes usually lose their roundness and flatten after death. So to make them look round again, plastic eye caps are placed inside the eyelids. The eye caps have hooks that hold the eyelids inside to keep them from opening during the wake.
MAKE-UP MASTERS. The beautifying capabilities of morticians are often underestimated. Unknown to many, they also are great make-up artists that can work on the living because the truth is, beautifying is part of their training and beautifying a dead person is even more challenging than just making the living look good. Restoration is part of their job description, so they really work heavy on make-up and add a few strategies like sewing limbs together and covering the stitches in make-up in some cases, to make the person ready for an open casket which is often the option chosen.
DEAD SILENT. Morgues are often as silent as libraries, unless relatives visit to claim or identify their loved ones in some cases. Working with the dead does not exactly entail much talking and morticians often speak in low tones to show respect for the dead. Because of its silence, it is actually a good place to catch up on one’s sleep or to read a good book.
FAMILY REUNIONS. Despite the usual perspective or feelings people have toward funeral homes and the people working—which make them seem like the grim reaper—the truth is, it is neutral ground. For families having quarrels, their arguments stop here to respect the dead, and they come in peace to claim their loved ones already resting in peace.