Día de los Muertos celebrates family, remembering loved ones
Published 9:21 am Friday, November 2, 2018
- Rosa Ramirez Rodriguez holds a framed picture of her brother José Carlos Rodriguez, who died in a car crash in 2006. Behind her is an alter in the tradition of Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead. Photos by Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
When Rosa Ramirez Rodriguez lost her brother more than 12 years ago, she did everything she could to remember him.
So, the 38-year-old Austin woman spent the last week decorating an altar of bright colors, candles, sugar skulls and marigolds. Pictures of her brother José “Joe” Carlos Rodriguez, who died in a car crash in 2006, adorn the shrine, along with several items that were his favorites: Corona beer, tequila, his favorite candies Joe would snack on, a tablet with pencil that highlighted his artistic skills, a pack of cigarettes he used to smoke and a Bible he read from along with a rosary draped around his portrait.
Among other items included a bowl of water and a towel, which the souls of the departed would cleanse themselves before visiting their loved ones back at home. These little reminders were what Día de los Muertos, or “Day of the Dead,” is really about: remembering those who have passed on, and keeping their memories alive.

The Día de los Muertos altar erected each year by Rosa Ramirez Rodriguez is a way of keeping those who are missed in her memories.
“They will never be forgotten,” Rodriguez said. “You keep them alive in your heart. These things help bring their souls back to the altar.”
Día de los Muertos starts on Oct. 31, which is All Hallows Eve, when the spirits of deceased children would come back and visit the families. The next day on All Saints Day, adult spirits would then pay a visit. Nov. 2 is considered to be All Souls Day, when families would go to a cemetery to decorate their loved one’s grave and tombs of their relatives.
However, Rodriguez shared that since her late brother’s birthday fell on Nov. 4, she didn’t usually take down the altar until after that. During this time, the family celebrates the lives of their ancestors and deceased. Contrary to the conceptions many people have associating Día de los Muertos with Halloween, the tradition is anything but “scary” and Rodriguez made a point in emphasizing that the two holidays are on “completely different ends of the spectrum.”
“It’s not so much sad, but remembering the happy memories you had with them,” Rodriguez explained.

Día de los Muertos alter.
Traditionally, Día de los Muertos in Mexico brings the people out onto the streets for parades and visiting the cemeteries to pay homage to their loved one. More exposure and insight into Día de los Muertos were further explored when in the previous year, Pixar released the film “Coco,” that was based on the traditions and lessons that the holiday taught families about the importance of remembering loved ones. With that type of introduction, Rodriguez felt excited to have more people understand the meaning of Día de los Muertos, and what it meant to the people who celebrated the holiday as opposed to being misinformed about what the holiday actually celebrated.
“I hope that people find something in common and create relationships,” she said. “This may help them feel closer to home. I feel that Austin is a close-knit town, and they are respectful of people from different races and cultures.”
Although there hasn’t been a lot of large-scaled events surrounding Día de los Muertos around Austin (Riverland Community College students have put on a couple events in the past), Rodriguez hoped that there would be other families who’d be interested in coming together and celebrating together as a community.
“Hopefully, more people get comfortable with it and say that they’d be interested in learning more about it,” she added.
Among the more recognizable symbols from the holiday were the sugar skulls painted in bright colors that also decorated the altar. However, they served a far more significant meaning of mocking Death in that it had not won in taking loved ones away from the living.
“Death may have taken them physically,” Rodriguez said, “but never in memory.”

“They will never be forgotten,” Rodriguez said. “You keep them alive in your heart. These things help bring their souls back to the altar.”
Remembering José
After her brother, José, died in a car accident in 2006, Rodriguez tried to construct an altar every year (even if it was small) to pay tribute to her loved ones and her late sibling. She’d recall the memories of growing up with him, and the many letters he would write to his sisters along with a drawing or two.
“He was very nice, chill, calm and always smiling,” she said with a smile. “José was very loveable and affectionate. He was very smart, and very artistic. Anything he drew was flawless. He was a great father to his little girl and they were inseparable.”
Día de los Muertos was also a time where family members would share stories about their deceased members, and recounting memories for younger generations who may not have met them or were too young to remember anything. With family pictures, those gatherings were times to celebrate, not to mourn, and to reflect on the meaning of family.
“There’d be children who are now nine to whatever, and we would tell them ‘this is your uncle,’” Rodriguez said. “They’d know who these people were because we tell them stories and we keep their memories alive that way. They ask questions, and we’d answer the best we can.”
One of the more important aspects of the holiday was to remember their loved ones and making sure they have a way to get to the home and visit. The marigolds were thought to have a scent that would help guide the spirits to their families among the living.
With the weather posing to be more mild than previous years, Rodriguez planned to make a trip to the local cemetery where her brother was buried and pay a visit.
“There’s a certain analogy that if you don’t talk about people, they fade away with time, and I think they had the right idea,” she said. “But, for me, I think José is with me all the time.”