When I was a little kid, I went to visit the graves of my grandmother's side of the family. It was a large cemetery, and the landmark our family always used was "the third grave after turning at the oak tree." That year, I went to the third grave past the oak tree as usual, but under the oak tree, several middle-aged men had spread out a straw mat and were having a banquet. Being a child back then, I didn't think it was strange at all. One of the men called out to me, "Where did you come from? Want some juice?", and I just stood there under the oak tree. After a while, my family finished visiting the grave and came back. They saw me standing under the oak tree and asked, "What are you doing in a place like that?" When I turned around, the men were gone, and only a piece of candy given to me by one of the men was left in my hand. Having a banquet right in the middle of a graveyard is something that seems impossible now that I've grown up. But if those men were the people sleeping in the graves, I suppose the drinks and snacks they were having back then were the offerings. Ever since then, whenever I go to visit that grave, I leave an offering under the oak tree as well.
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