Ancestral Offerings

     Offerings are a way to honor and pay tribute to the ones who came before us. A few ways of giving offerings to the dead are familiar to many of us, leaving flowers on the graves of our loved ones or lighting a candle for the dead in church. However, there are many different types of offerings that you can give your ancestors from physical items such as food and drinks to acts of dedication like charity donations and learning ancestral skills. So I thought I would share examples of offerings and mention some from my own ancestor veneration practice. 

    As for food offerings, you could bake your great grandma's favorite casserole or your grandpa's beloved apple pie. To honor ancestors of place, you could cook traditional food from the places your ancestors lived such as fish and chips from England or bratwurst from Germany. Drinks could be anything from water to coffee to tea to apple cider to great grandpa's favorite whiskey. 

    Music is another offering whether playing an album from grandma's favorite artist or listening to the genre of music your ancestors loved such as classical or American big bands. To honor ancestors of place, you could listen to traditional folk songs from the area like bagpipes from Scotland. 

    One thing that I love to do as an offering to my ancestors is to read aloud folktales, mythology, fairy tales, and urban legends in front of my ancestor altar. It's a way for me to honor the tradition of storytelling and my love of folklore with stories from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and America. 

    Other types of offerings could be learning an ancestral skill such as sewing, woodworking, sailing, painting, etc. Or learning an ancestral language like Norwegian, French, or Dutch. 

    Another way I honor my ancestors is through genealogy research, learning about my ancestors and sharing their stories in this blog and my ancestor scrapbooks.  

    One last example that I want to mention is donating money or doing community service in the name of your ancestor. You could donate to a cause that your ancestors cared about such as the environment or poverty relief. 

With love, 

Autumn Rose Surratt 

The Ancestor Witch