Ofrendas For The Future event

The ofrendas constructed by Ofelia Esparza were so meticulously made hearing her speak about it was telling how she approached making the altar with very careful attention to detail and respect for those she is honoring. It made me wish that I could go back and take up a little more time in constructing mine since now I felt like I disrespected the culture. In the topic of cultural appropriation, I felt at odds at first with the initial discussion. After all "appropriation" is what was the catalyst of Dia de Los Muertos but we instead call that syncretism. I ended up agreeing that the term appropriation should still be used in its negative connotations in a very specific sense...disrespect. However, we all exchange ideas every day and I think we are better for it much like how music changes hands often to create new sounds with obvious influences. Syncretism serves as an archive in itself as long as you don't forget the history which is the challenge we need to come across. Finally, the subject of death was interesting, I always heard about a spirit being in limbo for a certain period of time. I hadn't realized it was a belief in some circles that to even speak of their name in conversation was keeping them tied to the Earth. It's a really interesting aspect of death I haven't come across yet. In most families, death is viewed as a time of mourning. When my uncle died when I was little my family spent about three days in tears before moving on. I always thought it was kind of weird that we should mourn something we are all guaranteed. Even as I get older I'm curious to see (if I'm aware) what comes to be after death. Thanks for the great quarter, I learned a lot.