Womxn Who Rock: Ofrendas For The Future Reflection

I was pleasantly surprised how enlightened I was when watching the Ofrendas For the Future event. It was inspiring to see how different people approached giving offerings and appreciations and communicating how they felt visually on an Ofrenda. As a creative person myself, I was inspired by how creatively some individuals went about putting certain objects and shapes in specific ways. It was interesting to me that people had altars that were works-in-progress, and how it was a collective effort with a group or a family that were contributing to the altar, everyone giving their own additions. I wouldn't call myself a very spiritual person, but it was refreshing to see the panelists emphasize that the altars are seeking to celebrate life. It's a different way to look at death. The way that these panelists discussed how the creators of the altars described their though processes made this feel more of an intiame experience. Furthermore, Esparza described these altars as "a call to action", which makes the idea of these altars more active. They aren't supposed to be passive monuments, they are supposed to be actively engaging to the viewer so they can come out of it with a takeaway, and maybe spark a discussion with another viewer. Watching this webinar made me feel more connected to my own altar that I created, and to not look at it as simply a shrine to my artist. I came out of the event thinking of it as a moving experience, and happy that I attended.