October 26th, 2024

Ancestors Day

In South Africa it’s in May, in Cambodia October, and April in China. The concept of remembering our ancestors appears to be universal and, in many places, a national holiday. It tends to involve special food - often the favourite of the person being remembered - and poetry, songs and stories feature in many of the traditional versions of this day.

We were intrigued and so we made a date, invited friends over, and created our own day of remembrance. We turned out old photographs of our fathers, mothers, aunts, uncles and grandparents, old papers, old things made and used by them and laid them on the table. Black and white photographs from decades ago inevitably led to sharing memories, explaining relationships, and we found ourselves talking about love, parenting, loss and grief. There were snatches of songs, nips of whisky and a lot of talk about (and consumption of) food. It was fascinating hearing about differing family cultures, the tragedies and triumphs, and found we were looking at our present lives through the lens of past ones.

It was cathartic, moving, uplifting, sad and happy at the same time. It gave us a better understanding of each other and of ourselves.

We’re definitely going to do this again.