What to Do with Ashes After Cremation?

When Keeping the Ashes Doesn’t Feel Right

No one tells you what to do after the funeral. The urn comes home—and then what?

For some, it becomes part of their everyday life, tucked on a bookshelf or resting quietly by the bedside. For others, it just… doesn’t feel right.

“His ashes came home in a box. It sat in my closet for a year. It felt unfinished. Stuck. Limbo. I found it creepy to display the ashes as a shrine… He wasn’t in the ashes. And if he were, I wouldn’t want to keep him trapped in a knick-knack.”

“I scattered them. We had two very special places… One issue I had with keeping them would be where to keep them, and what would I do if something happened to them (knocked over, earthquake, whatever)?”

🌿 See Available National Park Destinations →

📞 Talk to a Memorial Specialist Now: (515) 206-4845

You’re not alone if you feel a quiet discomfort when you pass the urn. Maybe you’re unsure where it should go. Maybe it feels too heavy to face each day. Maybe the presence of it isn’t soothing—it’s a reminder that things haven’t settled.

That doesn’t mean you loved them any less.
It just means you might be ready for something different.

There’s No Shame in Letting Go

At BONAVENTURE, we speak with many families who kept the ashes for months—or years—before realizing they were holding on out of habit, uncertainty, or fear of doing it “wrong.”

“After a year, our children and I released them, returning them to the universe. It felt like a weight lifted.”

We understand that feeling. That moment when you realize that letting go doesn’t mean forgetting. It means transforming the grief. Releasing it. Letting it breathe.

Whether it’s been a month or a decade, our unaccompanied ash scattering service makes it possible to say goodbye with intention. We scatter ashes at stunning natural destinations—mountain streams, forested trails, ocean cliffs, glowing shores—places where peace comes easily.

With tracked shipping, a documented ceremony, and optional memorial plaque, your loved one’s farewell is honored every step of the way.

If keeping the ashes doesn’t feel right—maybe it’s time for something that does.
Let BONAVENTURE help you return them to the world, beautifully and respectfully.

🌿 See Available National Park Destinations →

📞 Talk to a Memorial Specialist Now: (515) 206-4845

 Keywords: scattering ashes, what to do with cremated remains, cremation memorial, ash scattering service, grief and letting go