Halloween is over, but don’t put those candles out just quite yet, because November 1st is the beginning of the two-day Mexican holiday, Dia de los Muertos. A ritual that dates back 3000 years.
Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a day to remember, honor, and celebrate the lives of lost loved ones.
Day one is dedicated to, and honors the lives of children who have died. It is known as, Dia de los Inocentes. Friends and family members decorate the graves of children who they have lost with white orchids.
Day two is Dia de los Muertos, and it honors adults by decorating their graves with bright orange marigolds.
Along with decorating graves, friends and families put out ofrendas, which are personal altars that honor a person. People put out flowers, candles, food, drinks, photos, and personal mementos of the person being remembered.
It is a celebration of life festival that pays respect to the deceased. Much like the Chinese film, “The Nightingale.”
In China’s 2015 submission to the Academy awards, “The Nightingale” tells the story of a grandfather and granddaughter on a journey through China with a bird that they want to set free at the grandmother's grave to honor a promise that the grandfather made to the grandmother before she passed away.
“The Nightingale” is set to release in select US theaters on Friday, November 6th.
