Showing posts with label Fiji and bereavement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fiji and bereavement. Show all posts

Saturday, June 14, 2008

When Nayau is too far away





from w
Because Fiji families are scattered over different parts of the world these days, there is extra grief when a member of the family dies in Fiji. Our friend Selai who lives in Geelong lost her Dad over a week ago. He was 78, lived on Nayau Island in Lau and was riding his horse to another village to prepare for the Sunday worship, and he fell. After a few days he passed away but many of his children were just too far away to attend the funeral. So here in Geelong a few friends visited Selai as soon as we heard the news, and then last night, Selai cooked a special dinner for a few friends as part of the ritual of remembering. We had kava, prayer and a meal together. In Fiji there are special gatherings after 4 days, 10 days, 40 days, but now some customs are adapted somewhat. Here are a few photos of some of the guests last night and one of the tables of the food prepared by Selai.