DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS IN THE GARDEN

Guiding ideas:
Getting our altar ready for the evening celebration

Ingredients for today’s Lab:
Being in the garden, clay and natural materials, candles, a large frame and textured ribbons, photographs, letters, paint, the HUGE box, and the large structure that became the altar.

What just happened?!:
This week, El Lab moved into the garden, where the air itself felt alive with memory and anticipation. Surrounded by leaves, soil, and sun, the amigues prepared our altar for the evening celebration of Día de los Muertos, a day to remember, to give thanks, and to celebrate life.

With Nicole, the children built a giant spider’s web using photographs and string, weaving together images of loved ones, friends, and family, creating a shimmering network of memories that fluttered in the breeze. They noticed how the web connected everything: “It’s like the sky is catching all the people we love,” one amigue said.

With Wendy, the amigues molded candle holders from clay and natural materials gathered in the garden - leaves, sticks, petals, seeds,- materials that could later return to the earth through composting. We talked about how what once was alive becomes part of the soil, and how the soil, in turn, gives life again.

Some amigues chose to write letters or draw pictures for those they missed. Others decorated the large frame with ribbons of different textures and colors, each one representing a connection, a memory, a feeling. The altar slowly transformed into a living sculpture of remembrance, love, and curiosity.

As we stood together at the end, the amigues noticed how the garden seemed to glow differently, as if the earth itself was breathing with us. We reflected on how everything: plants, people, worms, memories; belongs to the same cycle of life.

When the evening came and the candles were lit, the garden filled with gentle light and laughter. The altar stood as a bridge between worlds: between past and present, between what we can see and what we can only feel.