Ghana puts the “fun” in funeral! They are not the typical somber, black-attire affairs we commonly have in Canada. There is singing and dancing, and it lasts all afternoon (not to mention the other rituals that have taken place in the previous weeks and days!)
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| The women clap and dance, and respond to the call of the songs. |
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| There is singing at the funeral, and it is lead by the people in the middle, who carry horse tails! |
All the women were dressed in beautiful Sunday outfits; depending on the funeral, some wore white (for an older person) while others wore red or black (for a younger person). Some men wore cloth, while others wore suits, or even blue jeans and wrapped a cloth around them prior to dancing. We were wore a piece of cloth tied around our waist, over our regular clothing.
The dancing appears to be bizarre. It is very similar to the funky chicken, and yes, I did feel as ridiculous doing the dance as I would if I did the funky chicken at home. The dancing involved shrugging/thrusting of the shoulders and back, while moving my feet to the beat (which I could never find). You also need to move your elbows in and out, like a chicken. To end the dance, the person who invited you to dance will lean to the right, left, back and then front, and throw their arms in the front, then repeat all these movements, or just some of them to signify the end. It is all very individualistic. Some people would ask us to dance and then pull us towards the back, where others were sitting in rows of chairs. As we would dance, the people were laughing, and pointing at us. It did not help that we were a source of entertainment for some of the people at the funeral. Eventually, I got over this idea when I realized that the dancing is important to ensure that the spirit has a happy journey to the spirit world.
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| One of the many obituary 'ads' posted on a wall. Obituaries are placed on walls, and posts, commonly on posters with color. |