Dia de Muertos 2011

This is a simple altar I created for Day of The Dead, 2011 in our home. It honors my mother-in-law, Maria Luevano (top), and father-in-law Jose Anguiano from Mexico (far left), my mother and grandmother (lower center).

The artificial fruits represent the various foods they enyoyed in life, the "molcajete" (grinding stone) in the center was actually used by my mother to make salsa in.

This was one strong, hard-working generation who survived poverty, the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920), and in the case of my mother, survived transplantion into a new country and alien culture when she emigrated as a young girl into the U.S. in the early 1920's.

My mother's story alone, deserves a book. Married at 15, had her first child at 16. Endured an abusive marraiage until she declared her emancipation and took on the raising of 6 of us as a single mother working in the cannery.

May they all be granted eternal rest, well deserved.