Engraving Your Urn

Words give meaning to life and loss. Engraving your loved one's urn is a wonderful way to memorialize his or her life and your connection to your beloved. Your decision on what to write on an urn depends, of course, on the urn you choose. Not all cremation urns are able to be engraved, so choose wisely if you wish to place words on an urn. Often wood and brass urns can be engraved.

An urn that can be engraved will have parameters for this inscription. Some urns only have room for a person's name along with birth and death dates. Others have space for a short phrase or verse. You will have to work within set guidelines, which means there will be a word count for each line. Many urns have space for three lines of text, with perhaps 40 characters on each line. Often an urn company will have a small selection of poems, verses and bible verse that can also be engraved on some of its urns.

We all know a person's name has a unique meaning and simply saying a loved one's name is a mark of adoration. In a similar fashion, placing the name and life dates of your beloved is a beautiful reminder of the importance of his or her life. The engraving is like a grace note, a silent song etched onto the urn.

It can be difficult to decide on one verse from the selection an urn company offers. Think about your beloved as you read each choice. What words remind you of your loved one? Also ask yourself, which lines comfort you most? If you still can't choose a verse, ask friends and family for help.

If you want to compose your own phrase or verse, give yourself enough time to complete this task. Make a list of the words that remind you of your loved one, writing down passions, past times, roles (father, brother, uncle, friend), and character traits. The words you decided on don't need to rhyme or win a price in a poetry contest, they simply need to speak to you and remind you of your beloved.

If the phrases you write down don't seem unique enough to capture your loved one's presence, try using a thesaurus to find the right words. Try this online reverse dictionary found at One Look Dictionary Search: http://www.onelook.com/reverse-dictionary.shtml. Simply type in a word and this search engine gives you many more words and phrases that may work perfectly for your engraved urn.