Decorated Altars

This year, maybe because Halloween falls on the 31st or possibly because there wasn' t enough publicity, there were not as many altars as last year. The room this year was tucked away in a middle area and to get to the Day of the Dead altar room, one had to follow pictures of skeletons pointing visitors in the right direction.

Sister Molly's long and beautiful altar, along the far wall, had many items of interest with colorful flowers, mariachi skeletons, saints, and pictures. On the floor in front of the altar she made a pretend sand painting with paper. The other altars were simple with photographs and remembrances of their deceased. On
the walls hung images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and of Santo Nino de Atocha. Even with fewer altars, the room looked festive!

A children's table had sugar skulls to be decorated, pictures to be colored and masks to be finished by creative little hands! The Day of the Dead is a special day celebrated in Mexico and other countries to remember loved ones who have died. Somehow, it seems as if skeleton figures are becoming more popular. Even in Mexico, there is a larger variety of things to put on an altar for the dead.

When I saw a picture mural depicting scenes from Mexico, I thought it might  be fun to color and I brought the sheet home with me. It took me awhile to get the picture finished because I only had eight colors; red, yellow, orange, brown, black, green, pink, and purple. I carefully tried to stay within the lines of the tiny drawings. I have heard that coloring is some sort of therapy that helps people relax. I agree it is a relaxing thing to do and almost fell asleep as I worked on the picture.