The Comfort of Ritual

Rituals imbue our lives with depth and meaning. And in times of uncertainty, they are even more important because they create a sense of grounding.

- Text and Photographs by Liza Van Deventer

THE SUNRISE CHASERS

Marilyn Murray with Sharon van Niekerk, Angela Williams, Zelda Roman, Judy Henderson, Michael van Niekerk, Jessie van Niekerk and Ashleigh Roman

After a series of black­ outs and acute loss of vision, 73­ year­old Marilyn Murray was confronted with the devastating news that she had a rare brain tumour. Already large, the tumour was also in a dangerous location, her doctors said.

A naturally positive, light­ hearted, glass­half­full person, Marilyn was shaken by the news but chose to stay true to her core values in life: ‘One day at a time. This too shall pass. I will overcome.’

‘I’ve been through a lot in this life,’ she says. ‘This is not the first mountain I’ve climbed, and it won’t be the last. I just have to keep the faith and lean into my incredible support system, and I will get through this.’

Her family, shocked and saddened, banded together to set in motion something they had long discussed but never begun: watching the sunrise together and embracing the possibilities that each new day brings with it.