Death and All His Friends

I taught about Halloween. It's quite interesting learning the true

history of a holiday I remember as mainly kids, pranks, and candy.

Putting an objective spin on it was equally illuminating while sharing

with a 165 chinese college students. It really sounds like a crazy

holiday, and it probably looked even crazier with me drawing

scarecrows and Jack-o-lanterns on the board. By the end of it I had

hunched over and stumbled like a zombie, cackled like a witch (which

caught them completely off guard--they're naturally pretty skiddish),

and popping my collar to look like Dracula. I wrapped up the class by

sharing a scary story about a killer on the loose. I'm sure most of

them left with a higher heartrate and bloodpressure than they came with.

The class actually began pretty solemn, and it was probably my

favorite part. I asked them to share death customs with me, so we

could compare and contrast practices. Those who had experienced death

in their family revealed much about their philosophy of life, as well

as some insight into their faith, or that of their family (many

mentioned Buddhist monks, reading Buddhist scripture, or Taoist

practices of their family). I also shared typical Western Christian

practices, including the feeling of happiness for the departed loved

one who has realized the hope of their new life. Contrary to popular

opinion, or even Chinese suggestion, the majority of my students

practiced some rite or ritual that indicated a belief in the afterlife.

We continued by discussing the tradition of "Tomb Sweeping Day" and

how it was similar to All Saints Day in Christendom-which eventually

evolved into "All Hallows Eve." There was some surprise (admittedly

from myself as well) about how the two cultures both showed honor for

the dead in the afterlife.

While the class ended with my goofy, scary story (which was  presented

during the day with wide-opened windows beaming in sunshine), there

was a sense of mutual respect shared in how both of us aren't so

ridiculous in some of our beliefs and practices afterall.

The thin ice of content was tread in the classroom that day, but

hopefully to the benefit of everyone.