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| Photo by Kino Lim |
Tradition dictates that we Filipinos will be celebrating Undas very soon. The days of November 1 and 2 are days of contrast nowadays, because of the transitioning generations. The older generation like our grandparents try to keep its serious but spooky solemnity, the middle generation like our parents are doing it for doing's sake because its tradition and the younger generation, will join the celebration because cemeteries turn into festive places. On a public cemetery at night, there's the mass of people, the flickering lights of a thousand candles, the noise of vendors trying to get the most out of the holiday and the dead.
To the living, death is unknown. Whatever we don't know, we fear. Death is a fearful thing. Since the days of the dead are coming, the next articles until November 1 will be about the fearful creatures of Philippine Mythology or mystical beings that are a part of our culture. These are the best times to tell stories about what our ancestors feared. It is alright to be afraid, after all, there are a lot of things we don't know about and there could be something out there in the dark.