Story 35 of 52 /// Family Rituals

I could tell by the look on my mom’s face that something terrible had happened. She looked as if she had been crying. She sat us down, and said: “Nan has passed away. It was unexpected, she never had any pain.”

We last spoke three days ago. We last hugged seven months ago. And now I won’t be able to attend her funeral. There are important exams coming up, and I can’t miss school for so many days.

As a family, we have prepared ourselves for events like these. We have previously agreed that in case of a bad-news call, we would have a family meeting to discuss our needs together.

Nan was religious, so we agreed to go light a candle in the local church. She would have found it a great honor to have a candle burning in a Roman cathedral. And she loved the ocean, so we’ll take a day trip and walk along the beach in Ostia this coming weekend. Mom will represent us at the funeral. And put my letter and a lily on her coffin.

It’s different rituals than they would have been had we still been at home. But it’s our family rituals, and we can take them with us wherever we are.

About this Series

This story is part of our 52 Stories initiative: a collection of real, lived experiences from global families and international children navigating life across borders. Every story in this series is based on true events, highlighting both the beautiful breakthroughs and the complex, often hidden challenges of the relocation journey.

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