Lynne Bradley,
CRA 2024 Convention Chair
Lbradley93168@gmail.com
(760)-505-8758
When I first came to CA, I
thought that Dia de los Muertos, Day of the Dead, was kind of macabre.
I have to admit it was the Disney movie,
Coco, which helped me
to understand that the tradition of Dia de los Muertos was a beautiful tradition
of joyful celebration and remembrance.
The
main idea of the movie is that, as long as a
deceased
ancestor is
remembered,
he or she lives on. Only when the person ceases to be remembered will they
eventually disappear as one of the forgotten.
Still today, many people, especially in
southern CA, erect elaborate ofrendas (altars where they place pictures of their
departed ancestors
along with some of their favorite foods in
order to remember them.
Also on the ofrenda are
candles and aromatic marigold flowers designed
to help guide the ancestors’ spirits to the celebration.
So, the custom of DIa de los Muertos and the
song “Remember Me” from Coco
remind me that my ancestors live on as long as I
remember them.
Since our 2024 convention in San
Diego falls right during the final preparations for Dia de los Muertos, during
our time together, our rosemaling family will remember our rosemaling ancestors
and make sure they are not forgotten.
There will be an ofrenda and we invite everyone
to bring a picture or other small artifact to represent your personal rosemaling
ancestors and heroes.
There will be a memory book available
throughout our convention for everyone to write their personal memories and
experiences. We’ll encourage folks to take a little time to read the memories
that everyone has shared.
In a recent zoom class, some of us got into a
discussion about the lineage of rosemalers who, from one generation to the next,
have influenced –and continue to influence—the development of our beautiful art.
We invite the spirits of all those who have
been our role models to joyfully join our party as we celebrate them and each
other this October.
