In the mortuary of a funeral home in the Blue Mountains, a 95-kilogram body lay in a body bag, on the floor. Six figures crouched around it, determined.
On this September day in 2016, Elspeth (the estranged partner of the man who had died), with the help of friends, grabbed a section of the body bag and rolled up the grey plastic to gain a sturdy grip.
The group lifted the body onto a wooden door from the back shed of a friend’s house, and lugged it into a tiger-striped troop carrier.
The vehicle belonged to Lola Rus-Hartland, a death doula and funeral planner.
After maneuvering the body into Elspeth’s house, they carried it into a spare bedroom and placed it on a cooling plate set at -15 degrees.
Elspeth and Lola washed the body and covered it with a layer of rust-coloured crushed velvet and sprays of gum leaves.
For four days it looked as though he was asleep: skin still pinkish-brown, face utterly relaxed. He looked so peaceful, of good colour, and as if he would wake at any moment with one of his characteristic cheeky remarks. Only by day five did his face very slightly start to turn grey and begin to actually look dead.
From what Lola observes, it takes several days – rather than a brief viewing at a funeral home – for the human psyche to truly understand that a loved one has died.
Story sourced from: https://www.choice.com.au/health-and-body/healthy-ageing/ageing-and-retirement/articles/funerals-investigation-do-you-need-a-funeral-director
