Día de los Muertos

Hola, my little one. I am your Abuela Elena, and I want to tell you about a very special time of year called Día de los Muertos. This means the Day of the Dead. But it is not a sad or scary time. No, no. It is a happy party to remember all the people in our family we love, even if they are not with us anymore. We think about their smiles and the stories they told. It is a time to feel close to them and celebrate all the love we share. Our family is always with us in our hearts.

Together, we build our beautiful ofrenda. An ofrenda is a special table we make to welcome our family spirits home. First, we place pictures of your great-grandparents. See their smiling faces. They look so happy. Next, we add the bright orange marigold flowers. Can you smell them. Their sweet, lovely smell helps guide our family home to us. We also put out yummy pan de muerto, which is a sweet bread, as a special treat for them to enjoy. And at night, we light candles. The candles glow so warmly, like little stars lighting their way back to our home. Every single thing on our ofrenda is put there with love.

Our celebration happens on the nights of November 1st and November 2nd. On these nights, our whole house feels so warm and full of love. We gather around the ofrenda and I tell you stories about your great-grandfather and how he loved to sing silly songs. Then we all sing his favorite song together. We feel so close to everyone in our family. Día de los Muertos shows us that love is like a strong, invisible string that connects our hearts together forever. Our family is always with us, because we remember them with so much love.