The Day of the Dead in Mexico is a celebration of life. The memories and desires of the dearly departed are remembered on November 1st and 2nd. It is a time of fiestas and much celebration, but it is also a reflective time of great faith in the afterlife. Through out Mexico there are many celebrations in homes and in cemeteries where the dead are remembered with food and prayers. Altars are important elements to the celebrations and on these altars are kept the photographs, holy icons and food the departed loved best in life. Altars dedicated to the memory of children are adoned with toys and sweets. The whole family gatheres together at the cemetery or the family altar and remember all those people who they have loved in life but are now gone. El Dia de los Muertos is not ment to be a scary time but the one time in the year when the spirits of departed family return for a visit and share with the living a little bit of lifes pleasures.
