Yesterday I attended a funeral for our neighbor's brother. My neighbor Eddie is from Samoa and I loved the amazing outpouring from the Samoan community here in Utah for this family. The chapel was filled from the choir seats to the stage with friends and family and the brotherhood, love, and respect was tangible. Many of the remembrances were spoken in their native tongue and the whole experience was very spiritual and touching.
The circumstances surrounding the death were very difficult any time there is a suicide you definitely don't know how people are going to react. Gratefully everyone who attended only showed love and support to the family and shared many happy memories of the deceased. Considering everything it was an emotional but peaceful experience.
I just want to say how much I love and appreciate good neighbors - we are blessed to have amazing wonderful people living by us. These are people I can trust to come to my aid if I need them, they are people who show love and support and who are kind and compassionate to others. I haven't always had good neighbors so I am especially grateful for those who make an effort to live harmoniously with others. Having said that - I was impressed with the huge amount of support that my good neighbors received from our community. The whole experience was amazing!
I learned something about the Samoan culture from this funeral - most of the time after a funeral a luncheon is provided for the family - good neighbors and friends usually provide a pot-luck of sorts and the family is waited on and pampered. In the Samoan culture the family is in charge of the food and the luncheon and they invite all of those who have come to show their love and support to attend. Then the family waits on everyone else to show their gratitude for those who have made an effort to give them comfort during this difficult time. It is a way to give back for something that has been received and appreciated. I was impressed with this tradition and I noticed that those serving were able to forget their pain for the moment and concentrate on giving of themselves to others. It was a wonderful lesson on the blessing of service and again I was grateful to be able to be part of something so wonderful.
It is such a blessing to interact with people who have different cultures and traditions - we can always learn so much from each other. I am saddened that my neighbors had to face this difficult challenge in their lives - I hope that they know we are praying for them to have peace and to be able to deal with this tragedy. I am again grateful for the huge amount of love and support they received from so many people and for the chance I had to integrate my heart and my love with this amazing family.
No comments:
Post a Comment