A Damara tradition

I learned this weekend that a Damara tradition is to slaughter a cow for a wedding. The meat from the pelvic area is served only to the older women that had or have good marriages. They are very careful while cutting the bones and cooking the meat from those bones to not break any of the bones. It is bad luck if a bone breaks in this process and is a sign the new wife will not bear children. The bones are then cleaned and hung at the house who hosted the wedding, usually the bride but not always. Sometimes they also dye the bones a ucher color. The bones are hung by themselves for a year and then they can be moved where earlier wedding bones are hung or to the newlyweds’ home.

Another tradition is to hang a white flag on the roof for a wedding which stays until the weather dissolves it. They hang a Black flag for a death but only until the funeral is complete.

All for now, with all my love

Pictures of pelvic bones from a September 1 wedding and another of several from earlier weddings. The video is a wind/rainstorm with the white flag blowing. These were all taken yesterday where I am staying until Wednesday. I will send more about this visit in another post.