Undas 2007
This year, we spent our annual pilgrimage to the cemetery in Sta. Maria in Bulacan where my maternal grandparents and great grandparents are buried. On the other hand, we went to my paternal relatives’ graves in Cavite the day after.
Since the annual pilgrimage was set together with a weekend and a government-declared holiday, it would seem that people took advantage of the long vacation and avoided crowds by visiting the cemeteries before and after November 1. I do not know if many people share my small observation that the cemeteries were less crowded this year.
Or perhaps it comes with age. There used to be a time, when I was a much younger kid, that our extended family’s mausoleums were full of relatives, and the entire cemetery was brimming with people and it was like a fiesta. The childish amusement and fascination with spirits and all that is gone. It’s probably a good thing though, because it has made me feel more solemn about the memorial occasion.
Mas unti nga ngayon.
What did you do in the cemetery anyway? Our fmily didn’t have this kind of tradition until my mother died when I was in high school. After cleaning the grave, I really do not know what to do next. My sister said were suppose to pray… we waited until all the candles have all melted.
I miss my mother though.
Before, we use to go to cemetary at early mornings and leave at late afternoons, now, with so many dead realtives to visit (grandmas and grandpas), we could barely stay for an hour or two tops.