Remembering the Ancestors

 

We are approaching that oft ignored or minimized trinity of days: Halloween, All Saints Day, All Souls Day. Some ignore because of the sugar high. Others because of the pain and grief. Many because of lack of understanding the significance. Besides the treats and costumes, this is the time of year we remember. This time of year in this particular year I am not sure it could be more important. This year the memory of those who have gone before us as well as the struggling souls still living and stretching toward eternity may be that which gives us hope. Their lives, their faith, their endurance are not only models but tethers. We remain connected, the living and the dead in a cosmic resurrection process. 

All Hallows Blessing by Jan Richardson

Who live 

in the spaces between

our breathing

in the corner

of our vision

in the hollows

of our bones

in the chambers

of our heart:

nowhere can they

be touched

yet still

how they move us,

how they move 

in us,

made from the

tissue of memory

like the veil

between the worlds

that stirs at 

the merest breath

this night

and then is

at rest.