Going to the Groblje

This past Saturday my family brought me to the cemetery with them to pay their respects to the deceased Baba Sofija (Jasminka's mom) and Baba Marta (Boško's mom).  When we arrived at the first cemetery, I was surprised to see about ten vendors on the side of the road selling flowers, candles, and incense. What surprised me even more was the immense amount of people at the cemetery. I thought our visit was sporadic, but it turned out that Saturday was one of multiple Saturdays in the year dedicated to visiting graves of loved ones. I discovered that this meant the entire experience would be more than just walking to the grave, taking a moment, and leaving.

Every family at the cemetery, including mine, was cleaning the weeds and dirt that covered the grave.

As I watched the Skorić's take the time to maintain Baba Sofija's grave (then Baba Marta's at a different cemetery), I couldn't help but admire this Serbian tradition. We tend to say that the dead are not forgotten, and this display of care for the dead made me believe in those words. Even though I'm not related to Babe Sofija or Baba Marta, I felt so fortunate that the Skorić's shared this tradition with me and payed my respects Roman Catholic style to show my appreciation.

The cemetery Baba Marta was buried in had tombstones
that dated all the way back to the mid/late 1800's. The
fact that they are still adorned with fresh flowers and
candles speaks volumes of this Serbian tradition.