D ia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a colorful festival celebrating the living. In the United States and in Mexico's larger cities, families build altars in their homes, dedicating them to the dead. They surround these altars with flowers, food and pictures of the deceased. They light candles and place them next to the altar. The Aztecs and other Meso -American civilizations kept skulls as trophies and displayed them during the ritual. The skulls were used to symbolize death and rebirth. The Aztecs and other Meso -American civilizations believed that the dead came back to visit during the month long ritual. The natives viewed it as the continuation of life. Instead of fearing death, they embraced it. To them, life was a dream and only in death did they become truly awake. The ritual has evolved to include other cultures like Native Americans and African Americans doing their own dances. This was my third year celebrating this event. Each year Hollywood Forever Cemetery comes ...
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