Dia de los Muertos in Postcards 4

Día de los Muertos photo copyright collider.com

For those of you who don’t live influenced by the passions of Mexico, today is the third day of Dia de los Muertos. In Latin America, this is the day to remember those of our family and friends that have died.

Wikipedia quotes: Frances Ann Day summarizing the three-day celebration, the Day of the Dead:
“ On October 31, All Hallows Eve, the children make a children’s altar to invite theangelitos (spirits of dead children) to come back for a visit. November 1 is All Saints Day, and the adult spirits will come to visit. November 2 is All Souls Day, when families go to the cemetery to decorate the graves and tombs of their relatives. The three-day fiesta filled with marigolds, the flowers of the dead; muertos (the bread of the dead); sugar skulls; cardboard skeletons; tissue paper decorations; fruit and nuts; incense, and other traditional foods and decorations. ”
—Frances Ann Day, Latina and Latino Voices in Literature

I, who appreciate every one of my friends alive or dead, find this holiday especially intriguing. When I was young I couldn’t see the value of this day. I thought it all macabre. Neither could I see any value in my mother’s yearly gifts of lilies to her family graves. Now days I delight in the joy, the color, music, and foods of this family holiday.

Can’t you see me now eating sugar skulls and laughing with Marion, Cosmom, Jo, Janey, Mother, Gunny, grandma and grandpa, Harry, Gimpa, and especially Duck. All those other old friends would join us and celebrate life too.

Who would you honor on this special day?