Writer Māra Svīre: Remembering loved ones doesn't require visiting the grave

Latvian writer and columnist Māra Svīre, known for portraying characters and eras in her work — including attitudes toward death and cemeteries — has shared her personal perspective on contemporary cemetery culture. One of her stories inspired the film "Limuzīns Jāņu nakts krāsā," which includes a scene where a grave plot is offered to a couple with a pointed remark about how long the buyer might actually live.

A personal approach

Svīre says she does not consider herself someone who frequently visits cemeteries. She explains that she pays cemetery caretakers to maintain her relatives' graves, which keeps them tidy and gives her peace of mind. In cases where a loved one was cremated, she believes the person is no longer truly present in the urn, so she can think of them just as well at home or anywhere else.

Occasions for visiting

Despite this, Svīre notes specific times when she does go to the cemetery — during candle-lighting evenings, birthdays, name days, and on Jāņi (Midsummer), since that was also her father's name. Through this, the writer illustrates that honoring memory can take both traditional forms, such as visiting a grave, and everyday ones, such as simply thinking of departed relatives elsewhere.