A place of rest

A month has gone by since Viriamu's father left us, we went to visit his grave over the weekend. It's in a beautiful little cemetry perched above the village of Avera, overlooking the ocean, and in turn overlooked by Matotea's cliff and Manureva (the central ridge and highest points of Rurutu) to the north, a truly peaceful little spot.

Flowers from my Garden

This week has been difficult for us all, Viriamu lost his father on
monday morning, he had been fighting lung-cancer, and succumbed to
liver failure as a result of the chemotherapy. It's a sad story, but
fortunately, Viriamu's mum is surrounded by supportive family and
friends. Her children and grandchildren are all there at home with
her.

Heimana's great idea!

 

Hmmmmn...pushing yourself around on this thing is for chumps! If only I could find someone else to do it for me, my big sister for instance...

 

...or even better grandpa!

Nov 1st

Today is all saints' day, here in Rurutu we celebrate the day by paying our respects to the dead, in much the same way as Dia de las muertas we decorate the tombs of the dead and hold candlelit vigils over the night of the 31st, and believe that the spirits of the dead can come to visit us. Viriamu's brother decorates the tomb of their grandfather with flowers every year. The tomb is in our garden, it's a Tahitian tradition to be buried on your own piece of land, but the practice is actually forbidden these days.