Six feet below where I stand, my mother sobs and claws wildly at the walls of her coffin. Presently, she should be trying to remove an iron rod from within her chest, her screams of anguish silenced...

It’s immaculate: an ivory fur coat embellished with lavish bell sleeves and a two-foot train. As the model sways, the light catches the black speckles scattered throughout the fur. With each ruffle...