Honoring a fallen soldier

Today, during my daily walk, I stopped by Ben Manglona's home to pay my respect to his son Julian, who recently died. They have created a shrine for him where family and friends can gather to pay their respects.

They have placed many family pictures around so that those who visit can get a sense of who he was, and the love his family had for him.

The formal respect the local Chamorro people show for their dead is very touching. 18 days are spent in mourning-- 9 days for both family and friends to gather, to pay their respects, and to share meals together; and another 9 days for just the family-- Wow!

As Mormons, we have simple funerals that last a couple of hours (an hour meeting in church where friends and family gather, and another half-hour to an hour grave-site service where we inter the body and dedicate the grave). They we return home. Some family and freinds will gather after the funeral to eat a meal and talk about the one who died, but anything after the funeral is informal and up to the individual.

The body of Sargeant Manglona is supposed to arrive sometime today, and, as I understand it, the funeral will be held on Monday in Saipan.

Terri and I will not be able to attend the funeral, as we will be wending our way to San Diego. But we deffinitely want the Manglona family to know our thoughts and prayers are with them!

Not much progress on the home next to the high school-- perhaps they are just waiting for the concrete on the roof to dry

A new trench was dug near the NMC college branch. Don't know what it is for...

And I noticed that candles have been lit in the shrine next to the Korean war memorial