death, and what to do with the body

[ROTS]

So a family member of mine, died recently, and as we would expect, we would get together, and have the body buried in it's rightful, place. They spent the remainder of their lives in an "poor house" ( like an really depressing old old town orphanage, but everybody shares everything ) , and then a niece wanted to take him out ( hoping people could fund him ), but because he "made a mess" in the house, hey boyfriends house. So he went right back.

This guy main problem was his leg, that was ran over by a car or something along those lines, afterwards nobody wanted to be around him, I was told, of course their was many stories of how he lost his leg.

That kinda makes me sick, to know somebodies wife, would drop them off the face of the earth, because they could not put up with a problem. It is like the man who is living inside of his car, because his wife said no job, no love.

It is always depressing to hear about death, and watch your family members go thru, their belongings, without knowning the relationship. It feels like wolves, when they eat their own dead comrades.

However that is not the case. The daughter of my family member, is unwilling to budge ( what do you expect me to do ). I am lacking the funds to do so, as well. The stories of selfishness also rises, on the pile. To think their is a family grave not to far from where he is, but nobody is around, to carry the body, not even on a mule, and drop him in the ground. Such a simple task, claim the body, dig a hole, drop him into the ground. That is just stupid.

I mean, what is going to happen to us, or you, to be left unhappy, in a place, where everybody was sharing something, and this is suppose to be a land of love and peace. This is stupidity, and a joke.

The stupider thing, is that you have towns with burning plants ( simular to the ones in germany, I am told ), where they use the body to provide heat through out the world. I mean great lets drop off god, along the way, and pretend you will never get resurrected, and become a pile of ashes. I am not talking about "Superman IV" I am talking about real life.

Edited April 16, 2014 by ROTS

[Monroe]

Sad story ... what will become of us, our stuff, things we probably all think about at times ... In your story, I guess cremation might not be a possibility, it can also be expensive. In the 1700's many people were just buried in common graves that were later probably dug up to make room for new buildings and such. Death maybe is not fair and most of us will not be ready for it ... those that are lucky to be well off than most can arrange something better for their end. ... still you post a sad story.

I was reading about Mozart and the belief that he was buried in a paupers grave ... but that seems to not be exactly true. I heard that many years ago and couldn't believe that could happen but he had debts and his wife and children had nothing when he died at age 35.

The Location of Mozart's Grave ... Was he Buried a Pauper?

http://europeanhistory.about.com/od/famouspeople/a/dyk11.htm

An Unknown Grave

Although Mozart is buried somewhere in Vienna's St. Marx cemetery, the exact location is unknown; the current monument and 'grave' are the results of an educated guess. Unfortunately, the circumstances of the composer's burial, and the lack of any definite grave, has led to great confusion, including the common belief that Mozart was dumped into a mass grave for paupers. This view stems from a misinterpretation of funerary practices in eighteenth century Vienna.

Mozart's Burial

Mozart died on December 5th 1791. Records show that he was sealed in a wooden coffin and buried in a plot along with 4 - 5 other people; a wooden marker was used to identify the grave. Although this is the kind of burial modern readers may associate with poverty, it was actually the standard practice for middle income families of the time. The burial of groups of people in one grave was organised and dignified, differing greatly from the images of large open pits now synonymous with the term 'mass grave'.

Mozart may not have died rich, indeed he may have been relatively poor, but friends and admirers came to his widow's aid, helping her pay debts and funeral costs. Large graveside gatherings and grand funerals were discouraged in Vienna during this period, hence Mozart's simple burial, but a church service was certainly held in his honour.

-----------------------------------

Death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died at 1:00 in the morning on 5 December 1791. Sophie, his wife's sister, recalled, "I cannot possibly describe the boundless misery of his faithful wife as she threw herself on her knees and implored succour from the Almighty for His aid. She could not tear herself away from him, beg her as I did."

Following her husband's death, Constanze recovered from her despair and addressed the task of providing financial security for her family; the Mozarts had two young children, and Mozart had died with outstanding debts. She successfully appealed to the Emperor on 11 December 1791 for a widow's pension due to her as a result of Mozart's service to the Emperor as a part-time chamber composer. Additionally, she organized a series of concerts of Mozart's music and the publication of many of her husband's works. As a result, Constanze became financially secure over time.[19]

Soon after the composer's death a Mozart biography was started by Friedrich Schlichtegroll, who wrote an early account based on information from Mozart's sister, Nannerl. Working with Constanze, Franz Niemetschek wrote a biography as well. Much later, Constanze assisted her second husband, Georg Nikolaus von Nissen, on a more detailed biography published in 1826.

Mozart's musical reputation rose following his death; 20th-century biographer Maynard Solomon describes an "unprecedented wave of enthusiasm"[19] for his work after he died, and a number of publishers issued editions of his compositions.

[jaclaz]

OT , @monroe, a book that may interest you is the Memorie (Memoirs) by Lorenzo Da Ponte.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenzo_Da_Ponte

I find it a very interesting and entertaining:

I shall speak of things…so singular in their oddity as in some manner to instruct, or at least entertain, without wearying.

the original italian is available online:

http://www.liberliber.it/libri/d/da_ponte/index.php

whilst the English translation seemingly not, however spending a few bucks on it:

http://www.nybooks.com/books/imprints/classics/memoirs-of-lorenzo-da-ponte/

is well worth IMHO.

jaclaz

[Monroe]

Very interesting, thanks for posting ... I never heard of Lorenzo Da Ponte. I like all composers and music from the 1700's and before. He was born 8 years after Antonio Vivaldi died, my favorite composer. His life is a little like Vivaldi's ... became a priest, lived in Venice but fascinating that he eventually ended up in America and briefly ran a grocery store in Sunbury, PA and in 1828 became a US citizen ... his "Memoirs" looks interesting.

I enjoy reading about the early composers ... with today's royalties they probably would have all lived a better life.

... I do not want to write more and take away what ROTS originally posted about.