I am on the unfavourable side. I am against these costly traditions that choke us especially when we’re still mourning about the loss. It was like an additional heavy burden that I don’t think any bereaved family should be held responsible for.
I've felt strongly about this since I was a child. In Jamaica, it's customary to have celebrations and catering for 9 nights; In more recent years, it might be 3 nights, but the night before is expected.
For my dad, there were 3 nights of events where we had to cater for approx hundreds of people. Luckily my dad left things in place for his funeral, but the overall expense was exorbitant.
In this economy,9 nights would be pretty taxing on the expenses. I can't imagine how costly it must have been. I do think that these days there has to be a way to hold traditions without breaking a bank considering that perhaps, people don't really save much as the previous generation or even have the ability to save money, if all.
✅ excellent point!