Today, November 2, is the second day of Día de Los Muertos, dedicated to honoring adult family members and ancestors.
Pilsen is a Chicago neighborhood, rich in Hispanic culture, and wherever you walk you're greeted by a sensory feast with fabulous murals for the eyes, music for the ears, and the smell of foods to entice the nose.
Día de Los Muertos is a big celebration in Pilsen. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Isabel Hernandez built her first big altar (ofrenda) to show her community this wonderful tradition of keeping family members' and community members' memories alive. It's also her way of attempting to influence the younger generations to pass down Mexican traditions. This ofrenda takes her three weeks to build, fills her entire yard, and people from all over Chicago come to visit it.
I discovered Isabel's ofrenda on Instagram and last weekend we all piled into Lauren and Anthony's big SUV and headed to Pilsen to visit it. The ofrenda is 17 feet tall, has over 400 photos of departed relatives and community members. It's decorated with flowers, favorite foods, candles, personal mementos, papel picado (cut paper), calacas and calaveras (skulls created with humor and joy to show that death is not something to fear). Isabel pours so much love and joy into her ofrenda. She opens her gate for people to walk through garden and to the ofrenda. It is her beautiful gift to her community.
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