Vigil a healing ritual
by Maureen McNamee
Artist and activist Sharon Stevens was at home with her father when he took his last breath in 1995. She says he was a devout Catholic when he was alive, which provided the comfort of religious rituals, but Stevens was not, and after his death she found herself without a way to acknowledge her loss. “I just found that even though I’m a spiritual person, there’s nothing really that helps me to honour my deceased loved ones or deal with my grief,” she says. “I just felt sort of lost.”
Stevens eventually found inspiration in the way some other cultures recognize death and loss, such as Day of the Dead in Mexico, an annual celebration that she has witnessed and describes as having a carnival atmosphere. “For me, I’m spiritual and I really believe in ritual…. I felt that was really lacking in our culture,” she says. “Society is kind of yearning for ways to gather and get together.”
Two years ago, Stevens took it upon herself to start an annual Calgary ritual coinciding with the fall equinox in September. The Equinox Vigil is an all-ages, all-inclusive, artist-led event held in historic Union Cemetery where the living can gather to respectfully remember their ancestors and deceased loved ones, and develop a deeper understanding of community, life and death. The first vigil in 2012 attracted 200 people, and more than 300 attended the event in 2013, which featured a digital shrine displaying memorial messages submitted by attendees, an opportunity to create and display a memorial to a loved one, a mandala, art installations, a willow enclosure and a tea tent.
Stevens says people of all ages attend, from children to seniors, and take part in various activities involving art, music, spoken word and conversation. “As an artist, I think we have a responsibility to create a sacred event,” she says, adding that it’s a way to build a place of love where people can bring their grief, mourning and bewilderment. “It’s not a show…. It’s more emotional.”
The vigils are entirely funded by donors and sponsors, and participating artists are curated by a jury and paid a fee. In preparation for the 2014 Equinox Vigil, the Viva! fundraiser is taking place on Thursday, June 26 at the No. 1 Legion, including live music, readings, a Union Cemetery quiz with historian Harry Sanders, a DJ who will play the songs you want at your own funeral, and more . The next Equinox Vigil is scheduled for September 20, 2014.
http://www.ffwdweekly.com/article/life-style/urban-living/vigil-a-healing-ritual-12324/
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