Ronald l grimes biography

Rites Resurgence: Marking the passages of a life

Author and scholar Ronald L. Grimes &#;67T has observed rites of passage across cultures, from sacred Pueblo Indian initiations to Sikh turban ceremonies.

He has even played a homemade didgeridoo (an Aborigine wind instrument) and worn a mask of feathers during ceremonies he organized for friends.

But the rite of passage that affected him most deeply was of a more personal nature &#; the birth of his son and daughter.

Ronald l grimes biography

Both were born at home with the assistance of a midwife, which provided the freedom to play music, serve tea, and formally recognize the drama of childbirth.

&#;The event becomes elevated, if you give it its own space and set up room for that to happen,&#; Grimes said, in a phone interview from his home in Waterloo, Ontario.

&#;Serving tea, folding cloths, simple things suddenly become charged. With a birth, there is already a sense of awe and danger and mystery inscribed into the event. You&#;re just attending to it.