Business Day for the Dead

Yesterday, me, my wife and two daughters, along with my mother and my younger brother, visited my late father's grave. I'm not sure if this is done worldwide, but here where I live, it's called All Saints' Day/All Souls' Day, the time of the year when the locals troop to the cemetery to pay their annual respects to their loved ones who have gone on to the next life.

About four decades ago, this special day used to be observed solemnly. Silence was supposed to be a key element, with only the utterings of short prayers slicing through the stillness of the day.

Today, however, silence has become an absurdity when the locals celebrate All Saints' Day/All Souls' Day. In practically every cemetery, whether public or private, the sounds of laughter, of lively chats, of food being eaten, even of unplanned quarrels, could be heard. And the strange thing about all of these is that they all have become part and parcel of the celebration.

In every corner, there are stalls that sell almost every kind of food that you can think of, from biscuits to hotdogs. Even popular food chains have found cemeteries profitable business places during this time of the year.

All Saints' Day/All Souls' Day has ceased to become so. These days, I refer to it as Business Day for the Dead.