The article “Decoding The Food And Drink On A Day Of The Dead Alter”, gives a brief history on the origins of this holiday. They begin by explaining that its rooted from the Aztecs who believed one should not grieve the lost of a loved one but rather celebrate their lives once a year when their spirits make their way back to earth. The article then explains that everything on an alter has meaning, such as sugar skulls who represent the vitality of life, and decorated tissue paper which is meant to represent the fragility of life. This article made me so hungry, I love Pan De Muerto so much! This article also made me really happy because i love the traditions of my culture, Dia De Los Muertos is one of my favorite holidays. For myself the holiday is special and important, one of my jobs is a sales associate at Pier one Imports and around this time we sell Dia de los Muertos decorations and it sometimes bothers me when i see people buying them for halloween decorations because its not meant for halloween and i find myself getting really defensive sometimes. Does anyone else feel that way? Like when i see the sugar skull costumes, used as halloween costumes i’m like really? Every year my family and I make a beautiful Alter in our home. This is the first year that its going to be really special for me though, I lost my grandfather earlier this year and he was my best friend, so I’m really excited to be able to honor him this year for Dia De Los Muertos.
Hi Laura,
To answer your question, I do get really bothered as well. Because many people do not understand the meaning of dia de los muertos, since here in the U.S its very commercialized and our roots and cultures are left behind.
Hi Laura.
Sadly, when something like Dia de Los Muertos becomes popular and catches the eyes of people from different cultures, the true meaning of it tends to get lost. I feel like Dia de Los Muertos has become devalued by having a monetary value. The same can be said with Cinco de Mayo. Other cultures, like the American culture, sees these Chicana/o traditions as an excuse to wear the attire and eat the food without looking in to the reason for these celebrations.
I personally love Halloween and I love going in to the stores to buy all things Halloween, and I have come across Dia de Los Muertos decorations and costumes at these popular locations. These decorations and costumes are just another way for the big industries to money. They don’t realize that Dia de Los Muertos is a separate celebration from Halloween. Therefore, I understand your frustration towards this dilemma. I think that the only way to fix this problem is to have public celebrations of Dia de Los Muertos, so that other cultures have opportunities to truly learn about its origins and context.
Hey Laura
This article on Dia De los Muertos brought back many memories. I remember when i was younger we made altars for the family member that had passed. But it has been about 8 years that we no longer celebrate it. I feel that the more Americanized we become we loose so much of our culture. We stopped the celebration because a pastor at one of the churches we attended told us it was a bad thing and ever since then we never celebrated it. I am happy that you get to celebrate it with your family. Maybe i will be able to explain to my family what the true meaning of this day is and bring back the tradition to the family.