Celebrating and Discovering at Celebraciones de la Gente

What is was like covering Dia de los Muertos

Every year the Musum of Northern Arizona hosts Celebraciones de la Gente — a vibrant celebration of Mexican, Mexican American, and LatinX cultures, honoring the traditions of Día de los Muertos.

This year, NAU Social had the opportunity to attend the event and immerse ourselves in the tradition, culture, music and dance.

Darlin Ortega, Senior

What do I know about Dia de los Muertos?

I remember growing up and hearing about Day of the Dead. I come from a Guatemalan background and as far as I knew, Dia De Los Muertos was more associated with Mexican culture.

My mom told me that it is part of our culture, it’s about celebrating and remembering those family members who have passed away.

All I knew was what I saw in the photos that she would show me from her home country — a parade where people dress and paint their faces as sugar skulls as a way to honor our loved ones.

People also make ofrendas with pictures of loved ones that have passed away with food offerings since the saying is that is that this is the one night a year they can fully cross over.

For many years we didn’t celebrate it since no one in our family had passed.

That was until 2 years ago. Now, we do celebrate it and it’s no longer a day that simply passes by.

When I saw the movie Coco, it really left me in awe at how detailed it was.

Even I felt that I learned a bit from it.

As mentioned, I knew about the ofrendas and how the day is about celebrating our loved ones. However, the movie added to my knowledge about the marigolds, since I didn’t know that it was equally our job to help guide our loved ones back to us.

When I went to the Celebraciones de la Gente, I was struck by how beautiful everything was and how heartfelt it was.

As I took a walk around the ofrendas, all I wanted to do was tear up because it made me think of my loved ones.

They event encouraged people to bring pictures of their own loved ones to add to the ofrendas. It made me wish I had brought a picture of my family member.

There was so much love and support and the way people were laughing about the memories of their loved ones made me feel even more emotional.

I shared pictures of the ofrendas and the things I was seeing with my mom because she is someone I know would have liked to be there.

On a regular day at home, we still keep our ofrenda up and light a candle, but the ofrendas at Celebraciones de la Gente just felt different.

Seeing all the marigolds and smelling the incense also made the experience more real — bringing to life the scenes I had only experienced through my mom’s photographs.

There were also bunch of skeletons throughout the courtyard, which we don’t have at my house, and it really added to the experience.

Another thing that I enjoyed while at the Celebraciones de la Gente was the Folklorico. I was in awe because I thought it would have just been a traditional dance, but there was a story told behind it and it was incredible to see that.

My favorite part was the mariachi, Mariachi Rubor, an all-female mariachi band.

I loved the energy that they brought and they livened the place up even more than it already was.

They also reminded me of home, of all the memories I have with my family watching mariachi performances and the songs that they sang that we knew. It only made me imagine if it was the same for others.

Dia de los Muertos elements

Ofrendas are altars meant to serve as a welcoming space for spirts of the decreased.

Here on the ofrenda you place your offerings for spirits, it’s the main part of the day. What’s on it may include

• pictures of loved ones
• water (to quench their thirst from the journey)
• lit candles (can represent how many loved ones, light their way, or for simply for grieving)
• food offerings

Marigolds

These are flowers that are meant to help guide loved ones home. They can be placed on the altar to decorate as well.

Sugar Skulls

Brightly colored skulls made from sugar are often given as gifts to family and children. The sugar represents the sweetness of life, and the skulls symbolize love and longing for deceased loved ones

Papel picado

Papel picado is a traditional folk art that involves cutting colorful paper sheets to make decorative designs. For Dia de los Muertos, the sheets features skulls and skeletons. It’s believed that the papel picado is meant to guide the spirits of those who passed back to the living world.