We adapted Mexico's Día de Muertos into the Czech "Ceremony of Remembrance"—with Petra Ponocná

💀Do they celebrate death in Mexico on Día de Muertos?💀

Is it a fascination with death that makes us constantly commemorate old wounds every year?

❌Not at all. On the contrary: here, we’re not even able to talk properly about a friend’s death, even after a year. We tuck photos into albums, lock away our memories, and throw away their clothes. And God forbid their spirits should ever come back to haunt us.

In Mexico, on the other hand, people set up an altar for the deceased. They bring their favorite items and treats to their graves. They use sugar skulls to lure them back so they can celebrate with them and see that they haven’t been forgotten. 

We've been talking for a long time about how cemeteries should be brought back to life. 🪅And in Mexico, they know exactly how to do it! 🪅

🧡They decorate the graves with colorful flowers.

🧡During the Day of the Dead celebrations, there are taco stands at cemeteries.

🧡The mariachis are playing.

🧡And families stay overnight there. 

Let’s compare this to the Czech All Souls’ Day🥀—can you imagine not just going to lay a flower on a grave this year, but instead cooking the deceased’s favorite meal and going to the cemetery to chat with them? Playing music and dancing? Sharing memories with others who come there? Probably not. But you could, for example, invite your family over and remember the deceased together. Whether on All Souls’ Day or at another time—and whether with our help or on your own. Get inspired by us here, for example: https://www.pohrebnipruvodci.cz/obrad-vzpominani 

In our culture, grief is an illness that needs to be treated and that has a clearly defined end. In Mexico, no one expects grief to end with a funeral and for everything to go back to the way it was before; on the contrary, people return to it every year, naturally, just as it should be in life.

On top of that, we here also think we’ve invented self-help groups—for example, for victims of car accidents.

Yet in Mexico, there are nationally designated days for various specific causes of death, allowing people to share their experiences with others who have suffered the same fate.

🇲🇽 There’s so much to say about Mexico. We just talked about it on our podcast with our colleague Petra Ponocná, and if you’re interested, tune in on Spotify. 🇲🇽