When i was young, i’ve always dreaded waking up in the wee hours of the morning to follow my parents to sweep my ancestor’s grave during the Ching Ming Festival. Most chinese families do so to avoid the traffic jam arising from the once in a year occasion, especially when you have different “sites” to visit before the sun rises too hot.

My parents, as are most of the first/second generation Chinese community in Malaysia (My dad is 2 years shy of 80 and rode the seas to Malaysia from Fujian province when he was 2) are mostly into Taoism, mixed with elements of Buddhism.

Having some decorative fun with my nephew

Having some decorative fun with my nephew Rong

Like all things in life, Ching Ming takes on a different meaning when you’re older. While i am a self proclaimed agnostic,this has been an occasion where we used to have everyone in my family of 9 attend. And with many of my siblings away for work or migrated, and the passing of the older generation, the people who joins in gets scarcer by the years.

My grandpa's grave - with the morning sun breaking

My Grandpa’s grave with the morning sun breaking. The colored paper has it’s roots from a legend to mark the presence of the next of kin.

My dad will normally talk of his deceased parents as if they were there – bringing back years of memories and history about our family – a poignant reminder that one day, he himself yearns to be remembered the same way. It makes all the incessant spewing of carbon dioxide from the burning of sacrificial papers worthwhile.

Ancestral Offerings

My cousin preparing for an ancestral offerings of joss-sticks, rice, fruits and tea.

Is this religious? i think not. Just like any other chinese festival,it is simply a gathering of family and relatives to reminisce and to give thanks, moments which are precious in our busy lifes. Like everything else,the symbolism of the act is meaningful but only if you subscribe to it. One thing’s for sure we’re all mortal beings – what nature taketh, nature giveth ~

Wild Flowers

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