Glad I made it back in time for Los Angeles' original Day Of The Dead festival and procession ("Novenario Procession"), one of the oldest holidays in the Latin American calendar. This festival of flowers, sugar skulls, altars and face-painting is not about mourning the dead, but celebrating the life that they lead. It is also about showing gratitude for the life we have in front of us now, and the people whom connect us to something larger than ourselves. As Minerva Vazquez puts it, "...The Day of the Dead is a holiday to remember and give tribute to people whom were a part of this world. [About] marking your prints in all peopleβs hearts and when the time comes, you will be remembered with bright colors, your favorite food, some wild marigolds, or at least with a fragile light." For all those whom we've lost this year and for those long gone but not forgotten, your lives mattered and we love you.
