Queremos Dulces…

The Halloween fiestas continue…. Today Guerita’s school had their Halloween party which involved the kids dressing up (again!) and visiting selected houses in the neighbourhood for the pedidos de dulces (requests for lollies). Instead of saying “trick or treat” they sing this song:

Queremos Dulces de Halloween
Si no nos dan
Son unos codos
Si nos dan
Cooperaran
Para la fiesta de Halloween…Halloween!

Which means:

We want lollies/candy for Halloween
If you don’t give it to us
You are stingy
If you give it to us
You will cooperate
With the party for Halloween…Halloween!

Here’s a video of Guerita’s classing singing (more like yelling) it at one of the houses

The school combined today’s fiesta with their celebrations for Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) which is on Friday (a day off school). Traditionally Mexicans celebrate the day by honouring the dead visiting the graves of loved ones bringing gifts and building altars. Each class at Guerita’s school built an altar, adorned with pan de muertos (sugar coated bread), skulls and trinkets.

Kinder 2’s altar - pinned on the wall are skulls that the kids coloured in

The school was also decorated with papel picado (paper perforated in a pattern) a traditional Mexican decoration commonly used for all types of fiestas, including Easter and Christmas.

Decorations at school

Papel Picado

Guerita asked me the other day what Day of the Dead means and I wondered how to answer her. Death has been a continuing theme of questions from her lately. Ever since my grandmother passed away earlier this year, she has regularly asked us what dying is, where we go after we die, why do we die, when will we die and at times she has been really worried that we or she will die soon. Not having any religious beleifs, we weren’t going to give any pat responses about Heaven and I have tried to be as honest as possible without worrier her too much. In the end I said that no-one knows where people go after they die, but that I like to think that they are happy wherever they are and not feeling sick or sore anymore. Ah, the pressure of explaining the world to a 4 year old!

The celebrations here are not sombre or sad, but more a celebration of loved ones and a joyful remembrance. Its often been said that the attitude towards death in the Mexican (and other) cultures is much less fearful than in ours. My explanation of Day of the Dead to Guerita was that it was a day we could think about people we love who have died. She thought about it for a while and then said to me “Mum, I’m going to think about Nanna, and how lovely she was.”