In the village of Staryi Saltiv, Ukraine, families gathered at the cemetery to revive village life in an unlikely place. They exchanged news, sat at picnic tables filled with candy, Easter eggs, and freshly baked bread, and tended to family plots. The cemetery’s graves were adorned with fresh flowers, and children ran about collecting candy. Outside the cemetery, the village was a grim tableau of ruins, but Natalia Borysovska, a seamstress whose house was destroyed last year, noted that people were returning to clean the cemetery and the village was coming back to life.
Provody, a traditional day of remembrance in Ukraine, was celebrated on Sunday. Families spend time in cemeteries each year on the first Sunday after the Orthodox Easter, tidying up graves and leaving food and flowers for their deceased loved ones. The traditions of life and death in eastern Ukraine continue to be upheld.
2023-04-24 02:00:20
Post from www.nytimes.com