Candles & calaveras

I counted at least five butterflies swooping and looping in the garden yesterday. As we slowly ease into autumn, the monarchs migrate south to Mexico for the winter. For the indigenous Mexicans who celebrate El Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), the butterflies represent the souls of ancestors returning to earth for the three day holiday. It's a beautiful image--butterflies and spirits. The butterflies seem so carefree and joyful, it lightens the spirit to see them. Dancing from flower to flower, they are a perfect pairing for Día de los Muertos, more celebratory than somber. Cheerful (and sometimes humorous) paper maché calaveras are depicted dancing and laughing and music-making. Ofrendas (or altars) are decorated with objects significant to the life and personality of the departed loved one, along with favorite foods and drinks. Villagers parade to graves festooned with marigold petals and candles for a cemetery celebration, sharing stories about the lives of dead relatives and friends.

When a second grader suddenly wrapped me in a waist-embrace yesterday, I asked, "Were you needing a hug?" "No, you were. You just looked down in the dumps. Your mouth was like this," pointing to downturned corners on her own mouth. I am often wowed by the wisdom of children--powerfully perceptive and compassionate. Sometimes my face does things without my knowledge or permission, but the truth is that I recently attended a memorial service for a longtime family friend who lived a passionate and energetic life. A close friend of my mother, she had a front row seat as I muddled through life, finding my way to adulthood, and was privy to many of my meanest moments--the ones I wish I could take back. Somehow she managed to forgive my foibles and love me anyway. In fact, it was she who once sent me (or rather, Crazy Hat Lady) an e-mail titled "Possum Sighting," with text that read, "Should you need more bones, put on your gloves and hurry over to Woodhead, diagonally across the street from Lanier MS (the SE corner). Another corpse awaits! I was on my bike, not equipped to scoop it up. I admire your dedication to science!" Before her death, she fantasized with a friend about having her ashes mingled with fireworks and shot into the air in an explosion of color and light. "There goes Gran!" A suitable send-off for a life lived out loud and in full color.

But I think she would have liked the butterfly idea, too--a spirit free to flutter on the wind, dancing out its days.




What We're Reading:
The Spirit of Tío Fernando: A Day of the Dead Story by Janice Levy
Day of the Dead by Tony Johnston
Calavera Abecedario by Jeanette Winter
A Gift for Abuelita: Celebrating the Day of the Dead by Nancy Luenn
Diwali (Rookie Read-About Holidays) by Trudi Strain Trueit