Stories and Poems from Students of Times
Past
Weddings
All a traveler girl has to look forward to in life is her wedding day. Girls
usually are protected - never let to discos or the pictures for fear of
getting a bad name. Some families do not agree with this and are not in
favour of arranged marriages. If a girl gets a bad name it will always be
cast up to her. To protect their daughters some families match them off at
sixteen or seventeen. Who is to say what is right or wrong? After all some
men are too shy to approach a girl so a match is a good thing for them.
Others feel that a match is not for them. Matches are seldom arranged
between total strangers. Some girls and men prefer to choose their partner
themselves and if they do – why not?
Weddings are a big affair with a ten to fifteen tier cake, dresses etc.
Lately some travelers have their receptions in hotels and have a good old
time.
Anon
Rituals
When a traveler dies the family will leave the house as it is and stay with
relations. The wake could go on for a few days or sometimes weeks with a lot
of drinking. Relations could come from far and near. At the funeral there is
always a lot of crying. After the funeral everything in the house is burned
and if the dead person has been living in a trailer, that would be burned.
There are often fights at funerals because if one traveler has something
against another traveler he or she will have it out at the funeral. Old
fights might be patched up but new ones can also start. Every month there
may be a mass for the dead person and the family will return for this. A
year to the day be it even a Sunday the tombstone will be put up on the
grave and blessed by the priest. All the family will return for this. In
times past, no television, radio or discos would be attended or listened to
by the dead persons family. Any arranged marriage would have been postponed.
Some travelers nowadays do not believe in the old ways as they call them and
refuse to leave their house or leave the telly off. Others would not agree
with that. Since the centre opened Mrs Lawrence died, r.i.p. her family left
the house and Ballina but they will return for a while when the headstone is
being put up.
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This site was last updated
19-07-03
