I wasn’t raised to honor our ancestors, for the most part my family would avoid speaking of anyone who had passed away because it would bring on tears. I still think our culture sees crying as a weakness.
You might be surprised to learn that not everyone who is Mexican celebrates Dia De Los Muertos but the practice of honoring our ancestors moves through all cultures in their own unique way. Whether we think about it or not, we honor our ancestors through the family traditions, the beliefs they’ve passed onto us, through our cherished recipes and maybe even through prayer when we ask them to look over us and guide us.
Creating an ancestor altar or ofrenda is a meeting place where you can call upon your ancestors and nourish them with offerings and gratitude.
Today, I am unpacking and putting together my humble ofrenda for my ancestors and although this is only my fourth year celebrating Dia De Los Muertos, each time feels more special as I get more comfortable with bringing this tradition back into practice without the fear and recognizing death deserves to be honored as much as life.
My own altar space will be extend into the dining room so that on the evening of Dia De Los Muertos we can gather and enjoy my favorite dish my abuelita made for me: Barbacoa! I imagine that most can relate to the following sentiment, wondering if maybe its just an elderly thing but my grandparents always had cookies at the table. The vanilla creme filled kind of cookies you get at the dollar store to go with a cup of Nestle instant coffee. On my ofrenda space those are little details that I will be sure to include because I know that’s what they liked, but its not just about what you’re including on your altar space its the attention with which you do it.
When I would spend the summers with my abuelita in Calexico, she taught me how to greet her guests and offer them a drink. Usually a Coca-Cola poured over ice, in a chilled mug with a napkin. One of the key elements within any ancestor altar is to be sure to offers your guests drinks after the travel to get to your space. It is a widely held belief that one should make offerings to the ancestors especially if you are going to be asking anything of them, you know what they say “pansa llena Corazon contento.” (Happy stomach, happy heart)
I recently launched my Etsy shop and am excited to share that today I have released an Ancestor Collection that has three journal packs designed to assist you in putting together your own ancestor altar, connecting with your ancestors and ancestor shadow work. If you are someone who is fostering a connection with your lineage or teaching more own family about where they come from and expressing gratitude for all of those who have made it possible for you to be here, then these packs are for you!
