As much as I love everything about Summer from an average daily temperature of 105 degrees or more to the sound of cicadas buzzing in the trees to that feeling when you lay your arm on the leather console in your car and see how long you can keep it there (I know, weird huh?) I’m starting to appreciate Fall and Winter. As the season changes there are things that make me miss him all the more. I listen to friends and family talk about deer or elk hunting and I feel a little pang of sadness when I remember how excited he would be to go on his hunts. When I make a pot of fideo or albondigas I remember those evenings when I’d walk through the door to the wonderful aroma of his split pea & ham soup or his famous Texas chili. I’d smile and give him a kiss as I looked at the mess in my kitchen that he’d leave for me. And then there were the holidays….oh how he loved the holidays. Thanksgiving, eh. It was nice having the family together and eating all the food but Al lived for Christmas! Last Christmas was tough as it was our first one without him. I don’t imagine it will be as difficult this year but I think I’ll still be hiding a tear or two from my family.
Another thing I’ve come to appreciate at this time of year is something that has become deeply personal to me. The All Souls Procession. I’ve had a strange love affair with Mexico and the beautiful culture and started going to the procession a few years ago. But after Al passed, it took on a whole new meaning to me.
I feel a kinship with my fellow Tucsonans as we walk the downtown streets in celebration and love for our family and friends who have passed on. It’s deeply steeped in the Mexican culture but it’s gone beyond being something that only Latinos celebrate. Mexican, Asian, Black, Native American, White, you name it…we’re all there doing the same thing. Honoring those we love and have lost.
What’s amazing is that each of us in some way has had our hearts broken through loss but not our spirit. I can look at someone carrying a picture of their lost loved one and they can look at mine and we know. We know that the love is still there and that it still hurts at times. And we’re there because we want others to know. To know that this person was special and truly meant something in our lives. This person was a living, breathing person and now they’re gone. And we will honor and remember them. And of course there are people who have not experienced such loss and participating in the All Souls Procession proves to be a reminder to many of them of just how precious life and love is.
When I first started attending, I was a spectator but after Al passed I felt compelled to do more. My family & I join the procession and walk the route. We wear buttons and small sandwich boards that are adorned with Al’s picture. I paint my face and join the thousands who are there to celebrate….celebrate life and love and beyond.
1st shot is me in the 2010 procession, 2nd shot is me in the 2011 procession
This is such a happy and joyful event, a true expression of love and culture. I wish you all could experience it.
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