This weekend while many Americans celebrate Halloween, many Mexicans and their families will celebrate a holiday known as el día de los muertos. El día de los muertos is a holiday in which families take time to remember their loved ones who have died. Rather than being a solemn occasion, it is like a celebration of that person's life and memory. This holiday began with the Aztecs of Mexico and their belief that death was not an end, but merely a step in the ongoing life of a person. People who celebrate el día de los muertos spend lots of time preparing for this holiday. They build altares, altars for the deceased family member. The altares contain items that remind the family of their loved one like his/her favorite foood, magazines, movies candy, or toys if the person was a child. The altares also contain velas, candles. The family decorates their home and the grave site with cempazuchitl which are marigolds. These bright flowers are known as the flower of the dead.
The families go to the grave sites of their loved ones. They clean and decorate them and then they spend time at the cemetary reminiscing about their loved ones. This is a way for them to honor and remember their relatives.
