The Little Moments Are Always Greater

The mundane acts and little things always piqued my interest. For example, the red speckled frog that rested on my monstera plant outside my doorway.

Last month while in Jamaica for fieldwork for my self-led documentary project, What the Water Remembers, I attended the celebration of life and birthday party of a Chrissy. She was family and friends to countless people I interacted with in the Parottee community in Black River. The day prior to the celebration, I attended her funeral and her burial, which was in front of her home. In Jamaica, like other countries outside the United States, the deceased are sometimes buried at their home instead of a cemetery.

I was intrigued by the process of the grave masons.

When I arrived at the home for the celebration, I noticed three grave masons working collectively around and under a tent where her grave was held. I sat in a plastic chair directly across from where the men were working.

 I was so intrigued by their process: one man mixed the concrete mix with stone and water from the green drum on the ground, using a shovel. The next man picked up the mixture in a bucket and carefully applied it to the grave. Another measured the length and width of the granite with no tools, just an eye and a pencil, before handing it off to set. The man with the mix then laid the granite on the tomb and bonded it in place with a mallet. The entire process was quite interesting.

Lastly, the men had limited tools, but their measurement was precise, which I believe comes from knowledge and experience. While observing, I questioned the way a specific piece of granite was bonded to the grave in a certain way and was told it would complement the position of the other pieces. It’s the little details that a regular person wouldn’t observe.

The mundane act of watching the men build the tomb was beautiful to say the least. The process was so quiet, but intriguing. Remember the little moments are always greater than the big moments.