All Souls’ Day is marked around the world in different ways, but its main purpose is the same everywhere: to remember and commemorate those who have died. It can be a solemn and healing experience for the living.
While the day is a part of the Christian calendar, you don't need to be religious to take the opportunity to remember and reflect on the unique lives of the loved ones you've lost.
If you want to make this holiday meaningful for youself, here are 7 ways to do it.
1. Visit the final resting place of a loved one
Visit the grave or other resting place of a loved one with your family and friends. Say a prayer together or spend time talking over the great memories you have of that person.
2. Take their favorite things to the grave
You can take their favorite flowers, food, music or other things the person used to love when they were still alive. This is also a great way bring back happy memories and remember specific times you enjoyed with your loved one.
3. Light a candle
Lighting a candle in honor of the dead is a spiritual experience whether or not you practice a religion. The burning light creates as space in which to meditate on your loved one's life and memory, offer prayers, or simply express your feelings through your thoughts, as a communion with your loved one.
4. Create a memorial online
The online memorial you create for your loved one is a place you can visit from anywhere, at any time, to reflect on their life. It's also the most reliable way to keep their memory alive forever, since most online memorial sites provide a perpetual service. That means future generations can learn about your loved one from the memorial, too.
5. Publish a tribute
If you’ve already set up an online memorial, All Souls’ Day is the perfect time to write a tribute and publish it to the memorial. Writing a tribute can evoke a range of emotions, from bittersweet yearning to joy. This form of life celebration can be very soothing.
6. Set up a memorial at home
It's not always physically possible to visit the place where you put your loved one to rest. A good alternative is to set up a memorial at home. Here you can display their picture, add mementos from their life, light a candle and reflect on the impact they had on you.
7. Hold a remembrance lunch or dinner
A simple meal shared with close family and friends can help those who cherished the person reconnect with their memory, and each other. Sharing the foods your loved one enjoyed the most with the people who meant so much to them is an excellent, very active way to celebrate them and their legacy.