As Halloween approaches, people are scrambling to buy last-minute costumes, decorations, pumpkins and homemade holiday gifts. But we often forget the two days after Halloween, which are equally festive and significant, Dia De Los Muertos. 

As the deacon Hector Villareal finally told us, “All Souls’ Day is a Catholic tradition. Catholics commemorate the dead by praying for their souls. The ceremony includes visiting family graves and laying flowers at the graves. Some in Mexico and other countries In regions, families have a tradition of building altars at home to commemorate the deceased relatives. The altars are composed of photos of the deceased’s family members, candles, flowers, favorite dishes, fresh fruits, sugar skulls and anything else the deceased liked."

As Maria Jose Meneses said, this festival even predates Spain and Mexico, and the Aztecs used skulls to commemorate the dead. Later moved to All Souls' Day. Rise 

 Although this day is called the Day of the Dead, it is actually a celebration of life and death. This is a time to commemorate the lives of loved ones in the past, and it is also a way to communicate and respect them through family gatherings, including food, music, dance, exquisite clothing and multi-color decorations. It is also believed that both the living and the dead families are given the authority to communicate, celebrate and be with their loved ones again, as a large family gathering for the living and the dead.

All the objects used to celebrate are meaningful to this celebration, especially the objects used in the altar or "offerenda". Meneses provides us with a simple diagram that lists each part. And how to celebrate the holiday at home!

Four elements: Overrundasi includes four elements: water, wind, earth, and fire. These elements represent the journey of the deceased to finally find the way to rest. The water is left in the pitcher to provide the spirit with something to quench the thirst. Colorful paper banners or "papel picado" hung on the altar, representing wind. The earth is represented by food, including bread and homemade meals. Many candles are placed on the altar in the form of a cross to provide the element of fire and help souls find their way home.

Structure: Most of the Day of the Dead altars consist of one to three levels, three of which are the most common. These levels represent heaven, earth and underworld respectively. A more refined altar can include up to seven floors. The altar can be covered with white tablecloths, preferably handed down from family members. If you wish, you can also decorate the altar with colorful tablecloths. Some Mexicans also sprinkle salt on the altar to protect their bodies from decomposing as they travel between the world of the dead and the world of the living.

Personal belongings: Framed photos of the deceased relatives are usually placed on the altar. You can also include some belongings of the person so that they can return to the items they know during a short visit.

Sugar skulls: These colorful snacks are handmade and can be engraved with a person's name on the forehead. These sugar skulls or calaveras are added to the altar to represent the human spirit. Calaveras are also placed on the graves of loved ones as a sacrifice to commemorate their spirits. Some sugar skulls are made of clay and painted in bright colors.

Calendula: These beautiful, brightly colored cempasúchil flowers decorate altars and tombs, and are also worn on clothing and women’s hair. It is said that the bright colors and strong fragrance of this flower help attract the souls of the dead to return home.

How to celebrate at home:

Build an altar: You can build your own ofrenda or altar on a table or a cabinet with multiple shelves. Make sure to include all elements, including water, fire, earth, and wind. A pot of water, your loved one’s favorite food, framed pictures and a few candles are all suitable for adding. You can also put some of their most precious items on the altar. Be sure to decorate Orenda with colored paper banners, too.

DIY papel picado: Use colored tissues or light tablecloths to make your own banners or papel picado. Bright blue, yellow, pink, green and red are the best. Sketch several different sugar skull designs on paper, and then cut them out with scissors or a sharp knife. Be sure to cut out the holes for the eyes, nose, and mouth, and cut some shapes around the skull to make it decorative. You can also use rectangles and cut out flowers and other shapes. Use light rope or some rope to string each tissue together, and then hang your papel picado on the altar. You can also display banners above the door or hang them on the wall.

Katrina/Sugar Skull face painting and costume: You can paint your face in red, white and black to represent La Katrina. Red represents love for deceased friends and family. Black and white are similar to death and the soul of the dead. Your face should have a white foundation, with black around the eyes and mouth. Then apply red floral patterns around the forehead, cheeks and chin. If you want, you can also add more vivid colors. Women usually wear long floral dresses or robes, as well as exquisite floral headdresses or hair accessories. Men usually wear black suits and a big black hat decorated with marigolds, roses and other flowers.

Dress up Katrina/Make Katrina Paper Doll: If you have a skeleton statue, dress it in Katrina's style with small flowers and bright colors. You can also use a small paper tube as the body and a lollipop as the head to make a DIY Katrina paper doll. Cover the doll with colored tissues and pay close attention to her dress and face. Draw her face on the paper, color it with a marker, and then glue it on with hand glue. Wrap a strip of colorful tissues around her body to design a beautiful Día de los Muertos dress.

Dinner with the family: The Day of the Dead is a celebration centered on food, music and dance. Spend time with the family, enjoy traditional food and sweets, and sip a cup of delicious Mexican hot chocolate. Bake some pan de muerto or "dead bread". This traditional Mexican bread is easy to make, and if you want, you can shape it into an animal, flower, or skull pattern. Other traditional dishes include candied pumpkin (calabaza en tacha), tamales, pozole and mole.

Writing Literary Calaveras: Literary Calaveras is a lighthearted epitaph written to commemorate the dead. You can also write something to commemorate the few living people you love. When writing your Calavera, consider the humor about this person or the specific things that make them unique. These lines do not have to rhyme, but they are usually written as multi-line poems with rhyming verses. After writing, decorate the border with colorful sugar skulls, flowers or other Day of the Dead design. Use colored markers or colored pencils on a large piece of white construction paper. You can hang literary Calaveras on the altar or give them as gifts to your loved ones.

Celebrating the holiday from a Jewish perspective

What is your favorite holiday tradition?

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