My Faith Unexpectedly Enriched During My Internship in Poland

Monday November 2 marks All Souls Day here in Poland. All Souls Day is a day of prayer and commemoration for the dearly departed. It is sometimes celebrated on November 1 in conjunction with All Saints Day as it can be considered an extension of All Souls Day. To celebrate this occasion, as followed by the Catholic parish here and many other Christians, grave sites are cleaned up, new candles are lit, new wreaths or flowers are added, and then on All Souls Day time to pay respect and pray for the deceased is observed. 

Growing up in a small Catholic parish and community, I only visited the cemetery for funerals, Memorial Day, and occasionally if my grandma wanted to water some flowers. The cemetery at my parish back home seems very bleak compared to what I witnessed today as we prepared for All Souls Day here in Warsaw. I had heard of All Souls Day and All Saints Day but never really understood the value or the magnitude of these special days for the Polish people.

Cleaning gravesites in preparation for All Saints Day.

Working with the kids, several teachers and Sister Gabriella, we cleared away old leaves, weeds, branches, burnt out candles, and weathered or faded wreaths. Once each site was cleaned up new candles were lit and new wreaths, that the kids had made the day before, were placed on the site. We worked till it got dark, said some prayers and headed back. Most of the graves we were cleaning up appeared to be of children and infants who had passed between the 1950s and as recently as 2012. I don't know if the Holy Mother of Mercy Center usually takes care of these plots, or what the circumstances were, but I do think the kids are learning very valuable lessons with regard to respect and tradition.

Tidying the graves with Sr. Gabriella. 

After cleaning the graves, flowers and candles are added.

As the sun set beautifully behind the myriad of colorful trees that surround the cemetery, I was struck with the desire to be more aware of this day in the future with my family. Though I have only lost great grandparents, and one grandpa who I knew distantly, there will be a time when I will experience losses closer to my heart. When that time comes, I want to honor them, and my great grandparents who are buried at my parish cemetery now, with the respect they deserve. I hadn't known that other parishes commemorated their dead in this way, and my eyes have definitely been opened. 

The Centre of the Holy Mother of Mercy is not only a resource for helping children academically and socially, it is also a haven for the religious education it promotes. The prayers before each meal, trips to the church to say the rosary, prayer in the chapel, or events like today are helping to establish good values within the children here. I thought I knew what it meant to be Catholic, but I am learning each and every day.