New perspective on remembering the deceased

By Eileen Oldfield Staff Writer
Students find lessons on Mexican holiday sometimes ‘touchy’
   HILLSBOROUGH — Deceased relatives’ photos sat atop an altar in the Hillsborough Middle School Annex’s cafeteria, next to marigolds and mementos of their loved ones.
   Though a simple lunch table, the memorials, constructed by students and interspersed with plastic skeletons, sugar skulls, and pan de muertos— the bread of the dead — created the centerpiece for the seventh and eighth grade Spanish classes’ Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration.
   Based on ancient Aztec celebrations, the holiday lasts from Oct. 31 until Nov. 2, and is Mexico’s biggest celebration, Spanish teacher Kathy Molloy said.
   In addition to learning about the holiday during class, the students created decorations for the celebration, brought in mementos for the ofrenda — the altar with memorials, and created the food served at the event.
   ”It really immerses them in the culture,” Ms. Molloy said. “It’s very meaningful.”
   Organized by Ms. Molloy, Cecilia Parry, Stephanie Koren, and Marie Gallagher, the school’s Spanish teachers, the students spent the weeks prior to the celebration learning about the Mexican holiday, and preparing for the festival.
   The students’ parents help serve the food during the all-day festival, with the students attending during their regular Spanish class.
   ”One of my students’ dad is on a business trip down there (in Mexico),” Ms. Molloy said. “It’s like Christmas down there. It’s a whole carnival down there.”
   Despite the cultural difference, the students had no problems getting into the food and fun associated with the holiday — though Ms. Molloy said the classes celebrating the holiday right after breakfast had some trouble eating so early.
   Dancing, a tradition in the Mexican celebrations, proved a challenge too, though several students danced the Macarena for their classmates.
   Presenting the holiday to American middle school student does have complications, Ms. Molloy said.
   Since it shows death as a festival marked by treats, dancing and other celebrations, the Day of the Dead celebration creates a stark contrast to death as seen in the United States.
   In some cases, especially if a student recently experienced the death of a parent or relative, teaching about the holiday can be tricky.
   ”They want to remember, but I don’t know that they’re ready to get the celebration part of it,” Ms. Molloy said. “That’s so culturally different.”
   ”In Mexico, they’re prepared for it from a young age,” Ms. Gallagher said.