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• Celebrating Life in Grief

Celebrating Life in Grief

How do cultural traditions shape the ways we mourn, celebrate and remember?

Explore grief, remembrance and celebration through the rich traditions of Afro-Caribbean culture. Rooted in the practice of Nine Nights – gathering after a death to pay respects, share food and stories, and honour the continuing relationship between the living, the dead and our ancestors, this event offers a space for reflection, connection and remembrance.

Facilitated by members of the local Afro-Caribbean community, the event opens with a welcome and introduction to the history and traditions of Nine Nights. Through West Indian drumming, a libation to honour ancestors, storytelling, shared Afro-Caribbean food and the ceremonial planting of a yellow-flowering climber as a living memorial.

Participants are invited to experience and reflect on different ways of remembering and celebrating those who have died, while sharing cultural traditions from their own experiences of grief, creating a space for stories, connection and a collective exploration of how communities mourn, remember and celebrate.

Please note: This venue is on a grassy area with a small raised lip. It is possible to get a wheelchair into the area from one part of the edge.