Comments on Pallimed: A Hospice & Palliative Medicine Blog: Celebrations Reflecting Mortality: Halloween, Day ...

Thanks for selecting my Youtube video for your Día...

2007-11-05T19:55:00.000-06:00

Thanks for selecting my Youtube video for your Día de los muertos post. Just so glad you happened to like it. =) Greetings!!!

Thanks for all the great comments. It is nice to ...

2007-11-01T00:28:00.000-05:00

Thanks for all the great comments. It is nice to hear there are other events similar to this.

One of the points I did not make in the post that is important is that events like Day of the Dead are not meant to take away from personal reflections around the time of a loved ones anniversary, birthday death day etc. But when we have times to get together and communally celebrate and not just memorialize with somber mood, these too can be important on an individual and public basis.

Thanks. I had no idea. I'm going to quiz the kid...

2007-10-31T11:32:00.000-05:00

Thanks. I had no idea. I'm going to quiz the kids tonight.

Christin,I think you have touched a nerve--or emot...

2007-10-31T08:18:00.000-05:00

Christin,
I think you have touched a nerve--or emotion--or memory. Great post. Thanks. Immediately reminded me of a retreat I attended at Upaya, a Buddhist center in Santa Fe. They, of course, are in the Southwest and influenced by the Mexican culture. There are several skulls and other Dia de los Muertos images on display.

The Mennonite church I'm part of in Madison has an...

2007-10-31T07:29:00.000-05:00

The Mennonite church I'm part of in Madison has an All Soul's service each year. The church meets in the evening. During part of the service, the lights are dimmed. The front of the church has tables filled with candles which are then lit in memory of people who have died, some in the last year, some years ago. People share stories, laughter, tears. Children in the church are part of this remembering. Songs that were favorites of loved ones conclude the evening, often joyful songs sung acapella in 4-part harmony.

This year, the service incorporated other ways of expressing this, with a period of drumming and the signing of a book of rememberance, tapping into people's different ways of expressing themselves.

Even though I now live 2 1/2 hours away, it is a service I try to come back for this time for me to remember the patients and others I've cared for in the past year.

I enjoyed your comments and pictures regarding cel...

2007-10-31T00:18:00.000-05:00

I enjoyed your comments and pictures regarding celebrations connected to death. They reminded me of the tradition of jazz funerals in New Orleans, Louisiana, my hometown.

After mourners “cut the body loose” at the cemetery and leave, a rousing celebration begins. The funeral procession continues through the streets, growing in size with many community members, collectively called “second liners,” joining in and dancing to the music. “When the Saints Go Marching In” is a popular song. Bars are visited along the route, and many people bob decorated umbrellas or wave handkerchiefs to the beat. It’s a jubilant send-off that epitomizes death as an event for rejoicing.

Frances Shani Parker
Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog