Why Everybody Came To The Graveyard
The first chapter of Neil Gaiman’s latest best seller, The Graveyard Book (thanks for the copy Babe!) is titled ‘Why Nobody Came to the Graveyard’ – obviously that is an antithesis to how most of us flocked graveyards last Halloween to remember our dead.
I read somewhere that it is funny, how relatives come together every All Saint’s Day, in a sort of reunion, and all the catching up and snacking covers the fact that most of the people around that grave knows very little about the person lying six feet below.
But I think what is more interesting is finding your departed loved one’s grave flocked with a different set of people, a day after All Saint’s Day – just like what happened to me and my family when we visited our grandparent’s burial last Monday.
It was very movie-like: we came exhausted all the way from a neighboring province; I was carrying this wonderful flower arrangement of white chrysanthemums and orchids, and as we approached the grave, it was obvious that a lot of people were gathered there, not noticing us that we just caught each other in deep surprise as our gazes locked.
It could’ve been fine, it was not as if they were another family of my grandparents - if only they were not using our grandparent’s grave to play Bingo, which they most certainly did, that they were like mice scrambling all around upon seeing us. Apparently, they were from the grave opposite ours and it so happened that ours has more shade from the big tree near it.
It was customary, to pray upon being there right? Instead, because of the Bingo thing, the first thing I said was “Lolo, sinong nanalo [Who won in the Bingo, grandfather]?
natawa naman ako dun… tapos hindi ka pa makaget over kasi pinagbinggohan yung puntod ng lolo mo…
tao talaga…
lee-yow
November 23, 2009 at 6:25 pm
eh nakakatawa na nakakagulat eh ibang klaseng experience LOL
prinsesamusang
November 23, 2009 at 11:52 pm
ganito din nangyare samin. pagdating namin dun may mga taong nakaupo na din namin kilala. ang tagal namin nakatayo dun sa pagiisip kung sino sila. ang sasarap pa ng tawa habang kumakain ng mangga.
on your previous comment, about the lamay thing, yung friend ko nun gusto niyang pumunta para makikain. duh? feeling niya fiesta. ehe.
mga tao talaga. di mo alam kung maiinis ka o matatawa na lang.
aenid
November 8, 2009 at 9:20 am
mangga? at least hindi sila nagbibinggo diba? LOL
prinsesamusang
November 9, 2009 at 12:36 pm
hehehe anu bang laro sa BINGO yan? Block out? Lucky 7, o yung normal BINGO (hehehe hinmdi naman ako masyadong halata na naglalaro ng bingo no? hehe)
speaking of UNDAs, sad to say we failed to make it to visit my Lola, maulan kasi so nagtirik na lang kami sa labas ng bahay and offered our prayers…
have a great day my friend and happpy blogging
http://my-adventurez.com
http://bluedreamer27.com
http://mytopfiveonline.com
bluedreamer
November 5, 2009 at 5:26 pm
di ko nga nakita eh nagpulasan kasi sila LOL i think we can remember the dead anywhere, anytime kaya ayos lang siguro yun kahit hindi kayo nakapunta, kaso lang baka pinagbinggohan na din yun!
prinsesamusang
November 5, 2009 at 5:59 pm
ako nagdadasal talaga ko. =)
na sana gabayan ako ni lolo habang nasa sementeryo eh siya ang look-out ko sa taas at sabihin niya sa akin kung nasaan yung mga bebot.
hindi puwede mag-bingo sa puntod nina lolo, tsaka ayoko. ayaw namin. pusoy dos? pwede pa hhe. pero hindi pa rin.
pahiram aman nung buk PM! wui musta!
gawing ala=post daw ang komento hehehe.
yiN
November 5, 2009 at 2:47 pm
ibang klase ka pati ba naman sa langit bebot pa din? LOL post mo dito ang e-mail mo para sendan kita ng e-book ng graveyard book okay?
prinsesamusang
November 6, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Funny about asking your Lolo. Heeehee. My fave cousin sent me several Gaiman e-books. Bugging me to read The Graveyard Book.
witsandnuts
November 5, 2009 at 1:21 pm
you should read it. easy read lang but it can also take you for a ride.
prinsesamusang
November 6, 2009 at 5:35 pm
there is nothing so sad as a lonely grave. i’m glad your grandfather made some new friends. i’m sure he did not mind sharing the shade. and the floral arrangement you brought gladened his heart.
Seraphine
November 5, 2009 at 1:10 pm
it is not really lonely because my grandmother is also there plus an uncle and another grandmother, i think LOL
prinsesamusang
November 6, 2009 at 1:24 pm
it’s wonderful that you remember them. i think it happens a lot- people die, and then those that knew them die, and then nobody remembers them anymore.
Seraphine
November 6, 2009 at 2:43 pm
Hahaha, that was funny!
I remembered exactly what Kathleen said to my dad when we visited the cemetery, we found this eeky looking skull with blood (parang skull ng kambing) near his tomb (you know people, near lives there think cemetery is tambakan ng dumi) she said jokingly “naging bampira ka?”.
K.noizki
November 5, 2009 at 12:04 pm
i bet that would make a better post than mine LOL
prinsesamusang
November 5, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Highness. I made a total of 20 paper cranes. since last month. so where are you? where can I send these? respond ka sakin sa friendster. k?
TK
November 4, 2009 at 11:31 pm
wow that is awesome! thank you very much! sa facebook na lang kaya? add kita sa account ng sister ko!
prinsesamusang
November 5, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Buti Bingo lang at hindi nag totomahan at nagsayawan
Glad you didn’t get peeved coz I will be for intruding on someone else’s property duh 
bw
November 4, 2009 at 10:48 pm
we were too shocked to get peeved LOL natawa na lang kami afterwards.
prinsesamusang
November 5, 2009 at 12:17 pm
ayus yung huling line mo…. mabuti hindi sumagot si LOLO!
rheiboy17
November 4, 2009 at 10:14 pm
rheiboy long time! nako buti nga hindi eh, or baka hindi ko lang nadinig kasi ang nadidinig ko yung pag bola sa kabilang grave LOL
prinsesamusang
November 4, 2009 at 10:41 pm
natawa ako sa last line. sino raw ang nanalo?
ilang taon na rin ako di nakakapag-celebrate ng All Saint’s Day at All Soul’s Day. pero i make it a point to visit their graves every time i visit my hometown.
the scud
November 4, 2009 at 10:01 pm
sa tingin ko pwede namang icelebrate yun kahit nasan ka diba? pero you should check pa din, for all you know pinapag bingo-han na din ang grave ng lolo mo.
prinsesamusang
November 4, 2009 at 10:42 pm
hahaha.. playing bingo over somebody’s grave. tsk.tsk.
anyway, sinong bumingo?
chiquesan
November 4, 2009 at 7:56 pm
hindi ko nga alam eh hindi nga kasi sumagot eh.
prinsesamusang
November 5, 2009 at 12:43 pm
hehehe.. chobo naman nung mga yun..
chiquesan
November 5, 2009 at 7:11 pm
my new post pala is not for kids
di ko pa alam kung paano ka magre-react doon
hehe
raft3r
November 4, 2009 at 7:25 pm
sa palagay mo lang, conservative kaya ako?
prinsesamusang
November 4, 2009 at 10:43 pm
i think you are wise beyond your years
so ang sagot ko dyan ay isang malaking HINDI
hehe
tama ba?
raft3r
November 7, 2009 at 10:53 pm
LOL
prinsesamusang
November 8, 2009 at 8:06 am
teka
sino nga ang nanalo?
may balato ka ba?
raft3r
November 4, 2009 at 7:21 pm
hindi ko nga nalaman eh hindi naman sumagot si lolo.
prinsesamusang
November 4, 2009 at 10:44 pm
eh, pano naman kung sumagot sya?
raft3r
November 7, 2009 at 10:53 pm
eh di malalaman na natin kung sino ang nanalo! woohooo!
prinsesamusang
November 8, 2009 at 8:06 am
yeah, most of us often go to funeral or celebrate “Undas” without knowing the whole point ..that is also the case with most of the “lamay” nights ‘di ba? noong namatay na ‘yung tao, saka ang daming pumupunta, ‘yung iba nga ‘di naman ang lamay ang ipinunta kung ‘di yung sugalan o kaya’y makikitingin lang..:|
newey, nakita ko na ‘yang book na ‘yan sa website ni neil gaiman pero ‘di pa ako nakakabili..’lam mo na, wala naman talagang “bookstore” sa Bataan..tingnan ko sa National Bookstore dito sa Cabanatuan kung meron.. ^_^
ODDBLOOD
November 4, 2009 at 5:43 pm
you know people na nakikitingin sa lamay? that’s odd. LOL it is a good book actually, you should check it out. maganda ang pagkakabuo sa ibang character – i love silas.
prinsesamusang
November 4, 2009 at 10:46 pm