Dust to Dust

The Creation of Adam   (by Michelangelo)

In his “Psalm of Life,” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow included these famous words: Dust thou art, to dust returneth...

This is a likely reference to Genesis 2:7 (NIV): Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.  But alas,     the dust of all living beings must eventually returneth, and that’s where the fine art of human composting comes into play.

                                                                

Governor Jay Inslee of Washington State recently signed off on making this practice legal.  His legislation allows for the “natural organic reduction” of human remains. 

“Wood chips, straw and other substances” will facilitate the transformation of bodies into soil.  Loved ones could then grow commemorative plants within that sacred ground, while remembering that “dust thou art… was not spoken of the soul.”

Resources

https://abcnews.go.com/US/gov-jay-inslee-signs-bill-making-washington-1st/story?id=63189512