Feliz Dia de los Muertos!

Happy Day of the Dead, and welcome to November!

I live in Tucson right now, and Day of the Dead is a big holiday here. We have a Procession of Souls downtown. (It's on the 4th this year)
Here's the link below, for anyone interested.
Info.
And here's a video of what an "All Souls Procession" looks like, if you have never seen one.
All Souls Procession

Dia de los Muertos has roots in Aztec culture, and was later absorbed by Catholic practices. (As with all of our good holidays, it started out as a "heathen pagan thing that should be destroyed," but then when the church found that they couldn't kill it, they just adopted it.) In modern times, it can be celebrated in a number of ways, but the main idea is that for two nights, not only do we honor the departed, but they return to accept our offerings. It is a time for expressing grief, but also for celebrating the idea of life after death. The first night is to honor children and infants, the second night is for adults. People may visit cemeteries and leave toys, flowers or offerings of food. Parades are held in honor of our ancestors.

Speaking of ancestors, the annual Tucson Celtic Festival and Scottish Highland Games is also this weekend.
Celtic Festival
Since I have Scottish, Irish and Welsh ancestry, this is one way I plan to celebrate MY ancestors. I think having a pint of Kilt Lifter beer while listening to bagpipes is a GREAT way to do this.

So anyway, even if you don't celebrate the day of the dead, you can still remember and honor those who have gone before. Good, bad, or neutral, every one of our ancestors made possible the very breath you are taking right now. That deserves a parade, or flowers, or just a tip o' the glass with your favorite pint, doesn't it?