It's Dia de los Muertos/Day of the Dead, which marks another year of reflection and remembrance of the dead.
The Aztec-influenced holiday "Day of the Dead" is way for people across Latin America to honor their ancestors. While it is an outlet for all Tucsonans to connect with the culture of our city and its native/Mexican origins, it should not be confused with next week's All Souls Procession, another autumn tradition in Tucson.
Dia de los Muertos is a festive day, a holiday is filled with bright colors and spirit of the dead visit their families on October 31 and leave on November 2.
Among the culinary traditions day to celebrate, remember and prepare special foods in honor of those who have departed. Families make altars with a photo of the departed soul and offerings of food such as pan de muertos and sugar skulls.
Let's be clear, next week's All Souls Procession is not a Dia de los Muertos Parade.
According to the All Souls Procession website, the procession grew from the Tucson arts community. "For many years, the Procession was created by the community of performance artists and painters and sculptors of Tucson as a way to honor the dead. The masks and costumes and rituals and objects that they created had little to nothing to do with Dia de los Muertos. The timing was inspired by the many cultures that see this time of year as the time when the veil between the worlds is thinnest—when the dead are closest to us."
Let's celebrate the holiday and the procession as the two separate and distinct entities that they are.
