This week I was reminded of a passage in To Pause at the Threshold by Esther de Waal (2001: Morehouse). "The traditional worldview . . . speaks of interrelated worlds, the world of the living and the world of the dead, together making one whole and complete community under God’s direct control and influence. . . . They never forget the spirit world, the human being as part of a bigger system" (48).

My neighbors celebrated "Sending Off the Winter Clothes," first day of the tenth lunar month. Paper replicas of warm clothing and shoes, as well as food and money, were burned at twilight on small bonfires up and down the street, a kind of vaporous care package for dead loved ones who might be feeling the late autumn chill in the afterlife.

For days before the festival, street vendors offered the needed supplies. I bought a couple of suits, some shoes, and a small fortune in play money (none of which I burned). This is the first time I’ve seen replicas of American money. A symptom of globalization? Ben Franklin gazes out from the face of a very convincing five thousand dollar bill.