Our column today talked about how to acknowledge, during holiday celebrations, a child who has died. Cathy has some good suggestions here.

We have a long tradition at our house of honoring the deceased elders by placing their favorite alcoholic drink in front of their photos on the kitchen counter. So it's bourbon for my dad, Papa Joe, scotch for my brother-in-law Adam and and vodka for Hollis, my mother's late-in-life boyfriend who died three years ago.

We take sips of the drinks during the family gatherings. We call it "spirit food" because my Lakota friend, Faith Spotted Eagle, told me that in her tradition, food is placed on a plate for the loved ones who have passed.

(S-R archives photo)

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