A Natural Burial Story | Michigan Green Burial

Annica and I got married in 2014. About six months later, we moved to the Philippines, where I had the opportunity to study a large and beautiful group of plants called Medinilla, in the Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve. (Annica studied Community Development.) I think I climbed that mountain at least 100 times. I love the place.

Much to our excitement, we got pregnant in 2016. We joyfully told our families and friends (and our neighbors - see below). We began to wrap our minds around the complexities of having a baby in a foreign country – which really was not so hard to imagine for me, having been born in the Philippines myself. We were filled with hopes and dreams for this new life.

At about 12 weeks, Annica began to bleed, and our worst fears came true. We lost the baby.

After Annica had a D&C procedure, the hospital presented us with the remains. This is uncommon in American hospitals, but we were grateful the hospital in the Philippines gave us the option to take them home.

I don’t remember there being much of a discussion about what to do with them. I think I made a suggestion and it just seemed right.

The two of us held a little ceremony in the forest, and laid our hopes and dreams for our first baby to rest in a grove of Medinilla. And now, there is a little spot on this earth infused with them, holding them. And there is a species of Medinilla holding a special place in our hearts too. In 2018, we introduced our 2 month-old daughter, Linden, to that same species in a botanical garden in Florida.

I remember being touched by how meaningful it felt, and I want something similar for myself when the time comes.

This experience - natural burial in a protected forest - is what we want to offer others. Envision an intimate ceremony in a Michigan forest, where a nearby white oak or clump of trillium can take on special memorial meaning.