Religion and cremation
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The Irish Wake Tradition – Exploring Irish Wakes
Irish Wake traditions
An Irish wake usually began at the time of death and lasted until the family left with the body for the funeral service. If a death occurred in the evening, then an Irish wake was not held until the following night to allow mourners to travel and prepare for the services.
Preparations for an Irish wake begin soon after death. A window may be opened so that the spirit of the deceased may leave the room. It is considered bad luck to walk or stand between the deceased and the window, as this is thought to interrupt the progress of the soul out the window. After two hours, the window is then closed to prevent the soul from returning to the body. All clocks in the house are stopped as a sign of respect, and women gather to bathe and dress the body. The deceased often is dressed in white and if male, the face is shaved before the body is dressed. The body is then laid out for viewing on a table or bed and is attended until the burial. All mirrors in the household are covered, removed, or turned around. Also all clocks are stopped at the time the deceased passed.
Immediately after they prepare the body, the women begin keening.
This vocal lamentation is a display of mourning and sounds a bit like wailing to those who are not accustomed to it. Superstition holds that keening must not begin until after the body is prepared or evil spirits will surround the Irish wake house and body.
Devout Irish Catholics integrated many religious traditions into Irish wakes. A rosary is placed in the hands of the deceased, and each mourner kneels beside the body and says a prayer. The entire rosary is said at least once during an Irish wake, commonly at midnight. The prayers are usually led by a leader in the community and the entire group of mourners supply the responses.
The Irish also celebrated the life of the deceased and shared food and drink throughout an Irish wake. Music, dancing, and physical games made the wake feel more like a party. The Catholic church has tried numerous times (unsuccessfully) throughout history to abolish the consumption of alcohol at Irish wakes. Though it is a time of sadness, the presence of friends and family makes it more bearable and there is generally great joviality as the deceased is fondly remembered; indeed, there is tradition in some parts of the country to play a game of cards and include a hand for the deceased.
Friends stay with the corpse throughout the night. A rosary is said during the day and a Mass may also be said in the house. Typically an Irish wake lasts until the next afternoon, though occasionally it may last a second night, especially circumstances caused the wake to begin late in the evening.
The afternoon after an Irish wake, the undertaker will place the corpse in a coffin or casket and take it to the funeral home. As this represents the deceased leaving home for the last time; it is often one of the saddest moments. A removal will take place when people who may not have been to the house will attend and commiserate before the casket is closed for the last time. The body rests overnight in a church before burial after a Mass the following day.
Though many of these customs have faded away in modern Ireland, some are still practiced, particularly the laying out of the body in the house before burial. This is rare, however, in the main cities and towns and a declining practice in many rural areas. Generally an Irish wake is seen as the celebratory gathering after the funeral ceremony, where people might share stories of the deceased over food and drink, but most importantly, to give the people a day to remember the person and to show their love of them. The traditional Irish wake is strongest in the northern part of Ireland.
The Irish wake, in the sense of celebrating at a death, originated with the ancient Celts. In their belief system, once someone died in this world they moved on to the afterlife, which was a better world, and thus cause for celebration.
American Irish Wakes
Similar parties were thrown in Ireland when a loved one left the country. These became known as “American wakes” or “emigrant wakes” in the mid-19th century as Irish immigration to the United States increased. Many emigrants would never see their Irish neighbours and friends again, and a send-off party was thrown that included the same mix of gaiety and sadness found in an Irish wake.
An example of an Irish wake customs can be seen in the comedy “Waking Ned”.
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Irish Slaves – In memory of the Irish victims of Slavery
Irish Slaves – In memory of the Irish victims of Slavery.
President Jacques Chirac announced, last January, that France will hold a national day of remembrance for the victims of slavery every 10 May. The date for the annual holiday was chosen as it marks the day in 2001 when France passed a law recognising slavery as a crime against humanity. He said children should be taught about slavery at primary and secondary school as part of the national curriculum. “Slavery fed racism,” he said. “When people tried to justify the unjustifiable, that was when the first racist theories were elaborated.” This also applies to Ireland, in that there were many Irish Slaves, though this is not well known. 
Given that tens of thousands of Irish people were shipped into slavery, isnt it strange that Ireland has no day remembering them? I dont know of a single monument to the victims of slavery in Ireland. Perhaps someone can let me know if they know of one. As far as I know, even the Republican Movement fails to commemorate the tens of thousands of innocents sold into slavery from Ireland. Many of the women and children into sex slavery.
The following extract gives an idea of the colossal scale of the slave trade from Ireland. No doubt this post will be met by the usual chorus of deniers wishing we could keep quite about this – but lets just ignore them. I think some remembrance should be made of these unfortunate people. The event could be linked with the fight against slavery in the world today. Does anyone have suggestions?
Irish Slaves
The reign of Elizabeth I, English privateers captured 300 African Negroes, sold them as slaves, and initiated the English slave trade. Slavery was, of course, an old established commerce dating back into earliest history. Julius Caesar brought over a million slaves from defeated armies back to Rome. By the 16th century, the Arabs were the most active, generally capturing native peoples, not just Africans, marching them to a seaport and selling them to ship owners. Dutch, Portuguese and Spanish ships were originally the most active, supplying slaves to the Spanish colonies in America. It was not a big business in the beginning, but a very profitable one, and ship owners were primarily interested only in profits. The morality of selling human beings was never a factor to them.
After the Battle of Kinsale at the beginning of the 17th century, the English were faced with a problem of some 30,000 military prisoners, which they solved by creating an official policy of banishment. Other Irish leaders had voluntarily exiled to the continent, in fact, the Battle of Kinsale marked the beginning of the so-called “Wild Geese”, those Irish banished from their homeland. Banishment, however, did not solve the problem entirely, so James II encouraged selling the Irish as slaves to planters and settlers in the New World colonies. The first Irish slaves were sold to a settlement on the Amazon River In South America in 1612. It would probably be more accurate to say that the first “recorded” sale of Irish slaves was in 1612, because the English, who were noted for their meticulous record keeping, simply did not keep track of things Irish, whether it be goods or people, unless such was being shipped to England. The disappearance of a few hundred or a few thousand Irish was not a cause for alarm, but rather for rejoicing. Who cared what their names were anyway, they were gone.
Almost as soon as settlers landed in America, English privateers showed up with a good load of slaves to sell. The first load of African slaves brought to Virginia arrived at Jamestown in 1619. English shippers, with royal encouragement, partnered with the Dutch to try and corner the slave market to the exclusion of the Spanish and Portuguese. The demand was greatest in the Spanish occupied areas of Central and South America, but the settlement of North America moved steadily ahead, and the demand for slave labour grew.
The Proclamation of 1625 ordered that Irish political prisoners be transported overseas and sold as laborers to English planters, who were settling the islands of the West Indies, officially establishing a policy that was to continue for two centuries. In 1629 a large group of Irish men and women were sent to Guiana, and by 1632, in the main Irish slaves sold to Antigua and Montserrat in the West Indies. By 1637 a census showed that 69% of the total population of Montserrat were Irish slaves, which records show was a cause of concern to the English planters. But there were not enough political prisoners to supply the demand, so every petty infraction carried a sentence of transporting, and slaver gangs combed the country sides to kidnap enough people to fill out their quotas.
Although African Negroes were better suited to work in the semi-tropical climates of the Caribbean, they had to be purchased, while the Irish were free for the catching, so to speak. It is not surprising that Ireland became the biggest source of livestock for the English slave trade.
The Confederation War broke out in Kilkenny in 1641, as the Irish attempted to throw out the English yet again, something that seem to happen at least once every generation. Sir Morgan Cavanaugh of Clonmullen, one of the leaders, was killed during a battle in 1646, and his two sons, Daniel and Charles (later Colonel Charles) continued with the struggle until the uprising was crushed by Cromwell in 1649. It is recorded that Daniel and other Carlow Kavanaghs exiled themselves to Spain, where their descendants are still found today, concentrated in the northwestern corner of that country. Young Charles, who married Mary Kavanagh, daughter of Brian Kavanagh of Borris, was either exiled to Nantes, France, or transported to Barbados… or both. Although we haven’t found a record of him in a military life in France, it is known that the crown of Leinster and other regal paraphernalia associated with the Kingship of Leinster was brought to France, where it was on display in Bordeaux, just south of Nantes, until the French Revolution in 1794. As Daniel and Charles were the heirs to the Leinster kingship, one of them undoubtedly brought these royal artifacts to Bordeaux.
In the 12 year period during and following the Confederation revolt, from 1641 to 1652, over 550,000 Irish were killed by the English and 300,000 were sold as Irish slaves, as the Irish population of Ireland fell from 1,466,000 to 616,000. Banished soldiers were not allowed to take their wives and children with them, and naturally, the same for those sold as Irish slaves. The result was a growing population of homeless women and children, who being a public nuisance, were likewise rounded up and sold. But the worse was yet to come.
In 1649, Cromwell landed in Ireland and attacked Drogheda, slaughtering some 30,000 Irish living in the city. Cromwell reported: “I do not think 30 of their whole number escaped with their lives. Those that did are in safe custody in the Barbados.” A few months later, in 1650, 25,000 Irish were sold to planters in St. Kitt. During the 1650s decade of Cromwell’s Reign of Terror, over 100,000 Irish children, generally from 10 to 14 years old, were taken from Catholic parents and sold as Irish slaves in the West Indies, Virginia and New England. In fact, more Irish were sold as slaves to the American colonies and plantations from 1651 to 1660 than the total existing “free” population of the Americas!
But all did not go smoothly with Cromwell’s extermination plan, as Irish slaves revolted in Barbados in 1649. They were hanged, drawn and quartered and their heads were put on pikes, prominently displayed around Bridgetown as a warning to others. Cromwell then fought two quick wars against the Dutch in 1651, and thereafter monopolized the slave trade. Four years later he seized Jamaica from Spain, which then became the center of the English slave trade in the Caribbean.
On 14 August 1652, Cromwell began his Ethnic Cleansing of Ireland, ordering that the Irish were to be transported overseas, starting with 12,000 Irish prisoners sold to Barbados. The infamous “Connaught or Hell” proclamation was issued on 1 May 1654, where all Irish were ordered to be removed from their lands and relocated west of the Shannon or be transported to the West Indies. Those who have been to County Clare, a land of barren rock will understand what an impossible position such an order placed the Irish. A local sheep owner claimed that Clare had the tallest sheep in the world, standing some 7 feet at the withers, because in order to live, there was so little food, they had to graze at 40 miles per hour. With no place to go and stay alive, the Irish were slow to respond. This was an embarrassing problem as Cromwell had financed his Irish expeditions through business investors, who were promised Irish estates as dividends, and his soldiers were promised freehold land in exchange for their services. To speed up the relocation process, a reinforcing law was passed on 26 June 1657 stating: “Those who fail to transplant themselves into Connaught or Co. Clare within six months… Shall be attained of high treason… are to be sent into America or some other parts beyond the seas… those banished who return are to suffer the pains of death as felons by virtue of this act, without benefit of Clergy.”
Although it was not a crime to kill any Irish, and soldiers were encouraged to do so, the Irish slave trade proved too profitable to kill off the source of the product. Privateers and chartered shippers sent gangs out with quotas to fill, and in their zest as they scoured the countryside, they inadvertently kidnapped a number of English too. On March 25, 1659, a petition of 72 Englishmen was received in London, claiming they were illegally “now in slavery in the Barbados”’ . The petition also claimed that “7,000-8,000 Scots taken prisoner at the battle of Worcester in 1651 were sold to the British plantations in the New World,” and that “200 Frenchmen had been kidnapped, concealed and sold in Barbados for 900 pounds of cotton each.”
Subsequently some 52,000 Irish, mostly women and sturdy boys and girls, were sold to Barbados and Virginia alone. Another 30,000 Irish men and women were taken prisoners and ordered transported and sold as Irish slaves. In 1656, Cromwell’s Council of State ordered that 1000 Irish girls and 1000 Irish boys be rounded up and taken to Jamaica to be sold as slaves to English planters. As horrendous as these numbers sound, it only reflects a small part of the evil program, as most of the slaving activity was not recorded. There were no tears shed amongst the Irish when Cromwell died in 1660.
The Irish welcomed the restoration of the monarchy, with Charles II duly crowned, but it was a hollow expectation. After reviewing the profitability of the slave trade, Charles II chartered the Company of Royal Adventurers in 1662, which later became the Royal African Company. The Royal Family, including Charles II, the Queen Dowager and the Duke of York, then contracted to supply at least 3000 slaves annually to their chartered company. They far exceeded their quotas.
There are records of Irish slaves sold in 1664 to the French on St. Bartholomew, and English ships which made a stop in Ireland en route to the Americas, typically had a cargo of Irish slaves to sell on into the 18th century. Few people today realize that from 1600 to 1699, far more Irish were sold as slaves than Africans.
Irish Slaves or Indentured Servants
There has been a lot of whitewashing of the Irish slave trade, partly by not mentioning it, and partly by labelling slaves as indentured servants. There were indeed indentureds, including English, French, Spanish and even a few Irish. But there is a great difference between the two. Indentures bind two or more parties in mutual obligations. Servant indentures were agreements between an individual and a shipper in which the individual agreed to sell his services for a period of time in exchange for passage, and during his service, he would receive proper housing, food, clothing, and usually a piece of land at the end of the term of service. It is believed that some of the Irish that went to the Amazon settlement after the Battle of Kinsale and up to 1612 were exiled military who went voluntarily, probably as indentureds to Spanish or Portuguese shippers.
However, from 1625 onward the Irish were sold, pure and simple as Irish slaves. There were no indenture agreements, no protection, no choice. They were captured and originally turned over to shippers to be sold for their profit. Because the profits were so great, generally 900 pounds of cotton for a slave, the Irish slave trade became an industry in which everyone involved (except the Irish) had a share of the profits.
Treatment
Although the Africans and Irish were housed together and were the property of the planter owners, the Africans received much better treatment, food and housing. In the British West Indies the planters routinely tortured white Irish slaves for any infraction. Owners would hang Irish slaves by their hands and set their hands or feet afire as a means of punishment. To end this barbarity, Colonel William Brayne wrote to English authorities in 1656 urging the importation of Negro slaves on the grounds that, “as the planters would have to pay much more for them, they would have an interest in preserving their lives, which was wanting in the case of (Irish)….” many of whom, he charged, were killed by overwork and cruel treatment. African Negroes cost generally about 20 to 50 pounds Sterling, compared to 900 pounds of cotton (about 5 pounds Sterling) for Irish Slaves. They were also more durable in the hot climate, and caused fewer problems. The biggest bonus with the Africans though, was they were NOT Catholic, and any heathen pagan was better than an Irish Papist. Irish prisoners were commonly sentenced to a term of service, so theoretically they would eventually be free. In practice, many of the slavers sold the Irish on the same terms as prisoners for servitude of 7 to 10 years.
There was no racial consideration or discrimination, you were either a freeman or a slave, but there was aggressive religious discrimination, with the Pope considered by all English Protestants to be the enemy of God and civilization, and all Catholics heathens and hated. Irish Catholics were not considered to be Christians. On the other hand, the Irish were literate, usually more so than the plantation owners, and thus were used as house servants, account keepers, scribes and teachers. But any infraction was dealt with the same severity, whether African or Irish, field worker or domestic servant. Floggings were common, and if a planter beat an Irish slave to death, it was not a crime, only a financial loss, and a lesser loss than killing a more expensive African. Parliament passed the Act to Regulate Slaves on British Plantations in 1667, designating authorized punishments to include whippings and brandings for slave offenses against a Christian. Irish Catholics were not considered Christians, even if they were freemen.
The planters quickly began breeding the comely Irish women, not just because they were attractive, but because it was profitable,,, as well as pleasurable. Children of Irish slaves were themselves slaves, and although an Irish woman may become free, her children were not. Naturally, most Irish mothers remained with their children after earning their freedom. Planters then began to breed Irish slave women with African men to produce more slaves who had lighter skin and brought a higher price. The practice became so widespread that in 1681, legislation was passed “forbidding the practice of mating Irish slave women to African slave men for the purpose of producing slaves for sale.” This legislation was not the result of any moral or racial consideration, but rather because the practice was interfering with the profits of the Royal African Company! It is interesting to note that from 1680 to 1688, the Royal African Company sent 249 shiploads of slaves to the Indies and American Colonies, with a cargo of 60,000 Irish and Africans. More than 14,000 died during passage.
”In memory of all those who have died and suffered as a result of Slavery and the loss of liberty, wherever they came from, may they rest in peace”
Remembrance Gift Ideads
Remembrance Gift Ideads
Memorial Stones as a gift
Memorial Stones as a gift is a new approach that is very much being driven by the advent of the internet. Small scale artists and manufacturers started selling carved and personalised memorial stone gifts online. Reaching a marketplace that they never could have reached in their locality. These local artists used River Rock stones, that were smooth from the course of the water. These were perfect for engraving patterns in to them, personalizing the memorial stones.
These memorial stones, now made as well by larger manufacturers can be delivered to any part of America. They come in differing sizes and shapes. Some are purely designed to be a used as Garden stones, or stepping stones. While others are made for use, placed on the grave as a token. This ties in with the Jewish practice, that many might have seen at the end of Schindlers list.
There are also companies that make larger memorial stones, these are made out of composite stone, that is formed in to a rock. These memorial stones are usually for large gardens or parks and are a central feature in them.
Te carving of Memorial stones can impart complex Celtic patterns on to them, and the names of the person can be carved in as well. These name carvings are cut in to the stone by the artist. They create a beautiful effect that makes them a piece to be treasured for a long time or to be given as an ideal memorial gift.
I hope that this exploration of memorial stones has helped you decide on what gift may be the most suitable for you to look at getting. As a carver and engraver of stone. I hope that your focus is on small business owners and artists. For people like us, there is a lot of effort and passion in to making these products.
Irish Earth Gifts
The parent material is the most effective environmental factor in the formation of Irish soil. Irish soil can be mostly described as young soil, as an early stage of development. This is as a result of the last ice age, whick covered the entire country. The soil closely reflects the mineral composition of the parent rock, but not completely, as the formation of Irish soil, has had several contributing factors. One such is Agriculture; Ireland has been farmed for over 5000 years. This has modified Irish soil, especially its upper horizon; in Ireland cultivation has played an important part in weakening soil structure and soil fertility. An example of this in County Down, where we can see the effect of differing tree’s being planted on the soil profile. Scots pines tend to form horizontal podsols, while beeches are associated with brown earth / soil.
In some parts of Ireland, especially the North of the country. Basalt rock can account for 1/3 of underlying rock, giving a unique impact on soil development, freely draining basalt sol, has a dark chocolate appearance, which can hide the organic content. This brown earth needs little lime scale to lower its soil ph.
In mountainy areas the soil can be peaty, Soil PH, elevation, waterfall all contribute to this development of peat soil. The climate has played an important part in the development of this type of earth. Blanket peat is normally associated with excessive surface wetness. The exploitation of peat soil, for fuel and horticulture uses, has depleted this type of soil. Blanket peat is a very young type of soil, it has only been around for several thousand years.
The most common Irish soil type is a glacial till. Vast areas of Ireland are covered with this rich fine earth, which have made Ireland an abundant provider of food. The weather also affects the earth, by varying the rate of decay of organic material, and the amount of minerals washed out of the soil.
You need to ask when farming or gardening what type of soil do you have, as it can vary from heavy clay to silt to sand. Peaty soils are almost black as they are primarily decomposed organic matter. Sandy soil can feel gritty to the touch. The PH of your soil, will affect what you can grow on it. Some plants thrive in acidic soil, while others prefer alkaline soil. Signs of poor soil include water sitting on the surface, stunted plant growth. Perfect soil can be elusive, its better to grow plants suited to your soil.
Soil is basically divided in to two areas, top soil and sub soil. Top soil is usually darker in colour and is a good growth median. Sub soil is poor in nutrients and its earth has often been highly compacted.
Good soil has several distinctive characteristics, dark in colour, light to dig, and moist without being water logged, it s important to add humus to the topsoil, to improve its quality and replace lost nutrients to the soil. Irish soil in wet ground can leech its nutrients but remember there is really nothing as bad soil.
How to Write an Eulogy
How to Write an Eulogy
When you have to write an eulogy it is often something that can be a quiet difficult and challenging event. Writing an eulogy is not as difficult as it may sound long as you approach it correctly.
The first thing you want to do, is get a blank sheet of paper and write down a few lines on what message you want to convey to in the eulogy. This is private use only but it will help gather your thoughts and will allow the written eulogy to flow more freely.
Secondly you want to write down all the great things that you loved about the person. Describe their characteristics and who they were. This is so that you can honour the person appropriately by making the eulogy clear and focused. It can be hard to deliver a eulogy so it is important. You should maybe consult family and friends so that you’ll be able to have a full picture, everyone will have their own stories and impressions. Write it in your own
Thirdly, remember that when you are writing the eulogy that as long as it is heartfelt. The first draft is not going to be the finished eulogy. It is best to put it aside for 30 minutes when you have it done, and then come back with a fresh mind to work on the second draft of the eulogy.
Remember that a eulogy is a great honour to give but also a very difficult task as well, it just has to be heartfelt and through to your emotions. It has to reflect what other people may need to hear as well. It is part of the act of healing and honoring that is part of the grief and bereavement process. There is in reality no right or wrong when you write an eulogy.
Death from the Celtic perspective
Death to the Irish has always been looked on as completion of the circle of life, this circle is illustrated in Celtic crosses, within in Celtic artwork.It is shown by the three connected spirals, as displayed in Newgrange, symbolising birth, life, death. Circles have always fascinated the Celtic world and they are constantly present in Irish myths and legends. Time was circular, rather than linear, winter gave way to spring, and the cycle began again.
The period of mourning that is winter is immediately followed by spring and rebirth.The next worlds and this world are inextricably linked, it was not a sealed border, but liable to be crossed at anytime but especially at key dates such as Samhain, from which the modern Halloween festival came from. People dressed up in costumes so as to confuse the spirits of the dead, who crossed from their side to ours. Indeed within the Irish tradition, this crossing was not feared but respected, people wore costumes so that the spirits would not get lost in this world.
The departed have always been considered still close to this world in the memorial tradition, it is common for people to say before they pass on, that they have seen a loved one who has gone before them. It is also not unusual for this death to be pre-Informed. Death in Irish is called “Bas”; it is not something that just occurs, but rather an entity that you receive. Signs were traditionally, three knocks on the door, the cry of a banshee, animals coming in to your house. There are many different ways, but all were signs of “Bas” on the way.
When it occurred, it was not a sad time, but when you entered the eternal life and left pain and suffering behind. As it says in a traditional prayer, about death “ I am going home with thee, to thy home of Autumn, spring and summer.” The cold, sleeping season of winter, no longer exists. The body once the burial began, was only seen as a shell. This was the reason behind the Irish wake, a “party” that symbolised the soul being set free from its physical bounds. It also meant that the soul was not alone, while the soul began its departure from the body, it should be amongst friends and family
Burial Traditions around the world
Probably the most well known to an America audience is the Irish Wake. The traditional party that was given in Ireland to honour the dead and to mark their departure to the next world. To the Celts, same as in Christianity, death was only the fading of the physical form. It did not mean the end of the spirit, the essence of the person, more that they returned to where they came from. Quiet zen in fact.
The wake a way of acknowledging this. It is also a positive way of dealing with grief, as neighbours and family chipped in together, to feed everyone, and to organize the event. It was a way of the community showing how they were there for the family of the deceased.
In other countries burial traditons vary depending on what the religious belief of the area was. In Tibet, a buddiest country the body is fed to vultures. In a land with little soil, it made sense and it ties in with the concept of Buddhism that we are all one, whether that be God or nature. It was the cycle of life. One nurtures the other and then moves on to the next cycle of existence.
Burial traditions are important in that they give structure to a difficult time.
What you should know about Cremation Urns
One of the first things to realize is that there is no rush to purchase a cremation urn. The funeral providers will provide a temporary urn container, that can be used for a long period. Indeed some times for years.
How to select a cremation Urn.
Look initially at whether you want an urn that will be on display or used as a keepsake urn, there are keepsakes urns that can be worn as ornaments or given out to family members.
Why are there different Urns.
Some urns are purely made for storing the ashes, while others are used as a scattering urn. An urn that is used to hold the ashes while they are taken to a place of rest. There are also keepsake urns, which hold a small portion of the ashes and can be used so that every family member can have one. Most urns are closed via a screw top lid and they are very secure. There are also Celtic and Irish Urns that you can consider as well.
Can I put other items in the Urn.
There is not right or wrong with it comes to this. Some people place wedding rings and other keepsakes in to the cremation urn. If it is something that you want to do, then do it. There is no right or wrong with cremation and when something is driven by love.
I hope that these ideas help you when you are making the difficult decision on what urns to look at.