Thoughts on buying my son’s gravestone

We ordered the gravestone yesterday.

There was a last-minute rethink about the design of the stone which actually made things easier and means the stone will probably be standing in about a month, as opposed to 2-3 months.

There was also a last-minute rethink about the style of text for the stone which, impressively, cut the cost by about 1,000 euros. Who knew that laser etching was the cheaper version?

Also, we were warned that, when the stone is set up, there will be a phase of a couple of weeks while the foundation hardens. During this time, we are not to shake or push the gravestone in an effort to make sure that it is standing stably. The fact that he told us this makes me think it must happen, from time to time, which conjures up all manner of images of unfortunate graveyard experiences.

So, that’s that. That part of the grave might be done in a month, though I’m led to understand that the gardening is going to be a part-time job for the foreseeable future. There might also be a delay because the graveyard is doing some general landscaping near the site, and it would be better if that was finished before the stone gets put in. Whichever happens, we’ll share photos here when that’s done.