Today it's the 3rd of November and I'm two days late with this post, but the delay was intentional. The first day of November means Halloween these days for most people. For us it's All Souls' Day.
All Souls' Day, also known as the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed and the Day of the Dead, is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed, which is observed by Roman Catholics and other Christian denominations annually on November 2. source
Every year, on the first day of November we go to the cemetery to remember our loved ones. We bring flowers to the the grave, light candles and say a prayer. It's an old tradition that is still alive and I hope it's going to be kept alive for long.
One week before the event, farmer markets and supermarkets are starting to sell crysanthenums, as that's the typical flower for the event.
Then all those flowers are brought to the cemetery.
Nowadays however people are flexible and go to the cemetery in the closest weekend to the 1st of November and this is why sometimes the cemetery is full of flowers before the 1st.
All Souls' Day is celebrated in many European countries with vigils, candles, the decoration of graves, and special prayers as well as many regional customs. Examples of regional customs include leaving cakes for departed loved ones on the table and keeping the room warm for their comfort in Tirol and the custom in Brittany, where people flock to the cemeteries at nightfall to kneel, bareheaded, at the graves of their loved ones and anoint the hollow of the tombstone with holy water or to pour libations of milk on it. At bedtime, supper is left on the table for the souls. source
The beauty of posting on Hive is that I always have to research what I'm writing about, which gives me the occasion to learn something. I knew this day is celebrated in most of the European countries, but not the same way.
