Kamusta Readers!
Where halloween is a night the living masquerade in costumes and the supernatural, Fiesta of the Dead ( consisting of All Saint's Day and All Soul's Day ) is a time for the supranatural "to show themselves" ( roughly translated from "nagpaparamdam" ) and to enjoy earthly senses once again.
We went to the cemetery early to avoid the crowd because on Fiesta of the Dead ( undas ) people all over the Philippines would return to their hometown to pay respect to their dead relatives.
A breeze made it difficult to light the candles we placed near our relatives' gravestones. The overcast sky started sprinkling and refreshing the flowers we brought. Some of us put on our hoodies. From afar a boombox blasted music. My little cousins laughed as they shielded and relight candles.
According to my aunt, the light of the candles would help guide the souls of those in purgatory, and in some way, its warmth and smoky scent would feed the souls.
At home people would leave food on the dining room table or in front of altars. My aunt's mother told her to prepare food by 6 pm ( because by this time, the souls will start coming down from purgatory ). The souls also would get full by the smell of fragrant food ( such as bico ), and we know that the souls are eating when ants start munching on the food offerings ( Beers are also accepted ).
We started getting hungry, so we ate the snacks we brought from home: potato chips, the turon we made that afternoon, and hard boiled quail eggs. We sipped Cola and sat on marble benches. The sprinkling paused; wet grass after the rain smelled like freshly washed rice.
My aunt wondered: "Why is it that people will wait either until the Fiesta of the Dead or a wedding day to meet up with family and friends? Shouldn't we enjoy each others company while we're still alive?"
No comments:
Post a Comment