| In Cambodian culture, when someone dies the body is created, either that same day or the next day. Then there are special ceremonies for the seventh day of death, the thirtieth day, and the one-year anniversary. Rawy has worked at the Maryknoll house as a cook and housekeeper for 12 or 13 years, and last week her sister died. All the Maryknoll people were out of town in Thailand and couldn't attend the funeral so we made a point to attend the seventh day celebration held today. Because some of us had morning meetings we left the Maryknoll office at 6:00 AM and drove a half hour to Rawy's house outside of Phnom Penh. We were the first guests to arrive but the tables were already set up and the funeral music was blaring over the neighborhood from loudspeakers located high in the trees. |
The custom is to go to the family home and eat boh-boh, boiled rice with some meat and herbs mixed in to make a porridge. Here we greet the family as we arrive. The silver cup on the table to the left is for putting money and the book is to record the names of the visitors and how much money they gave. The tent, tables, and food comes as part of the catering service the family engages.
After eating the rice porridge, we departed. It is almost impossible to talk to the family, partly because of the language difficulties but mostly because of the funeral music that is literally drowning out normal conversation. Rawy's family live in three houses side by side, all built up on stilts, like this bridge, to keep them out of the water when the annual floods come.