All Saints Day was a unique and wonderful experience for me. I had never seen some of the expressions of faith and devotion and remembrance of the deceased as I experienced them here in San Lucas.

     During the week leading up to November 1, families came to the cemetery to clean and decorate. They applied fresh coats of paint, laid flowers and wreaths, and created pine carpets around and often on top of the vaults. (With very few exceptions, the deceased here are not buried underground but are placed in above-ground concrete vaults, or sepulchers. These are large, normally constructed for entire families, and are usually painted white or aqua-green, though a few are bright blue, red, or purple.) They hung pine, plastic, or paper-chain garland along the sides. Flags and banners also added to the festive display of color.

     As a North American, I had to hesitate before using the word festive in describing the cemetery. My experience in the United States is that cemeteries are quiet places of reflective remembrance; grey granite and black iron contribute to that somber mood. But this typical Guatemalan cemetery, as well as the overall local view of death, is markedly different. Afterlife supercedes loss. Death is expected and accepted; "Si Dios me da la vida (If God gives me life)," is a common expression used when referring to future days and plans. The cemetery is a place of the celebration of the fullness and fulfillment of life, not the pain and supposed unknown of death. Children play there as they would in a park, flying kites from the tops of the vaults. During All Saints Day and the following day, All Souls Day, families brought food to the graves of their loved ones and picnicked there. "Festive" certainly is the right word to describe the cemetery.

     However, there definitely was a time and place for more somber, reflective remembrance. Much of this took place at the church.

     Many people came to the church to spend time prayerfully remembering their loved ones. Many families have lost children; malnutrition and starvation are not uncommon for people living in the process of poverty. Nearly everyone has family and friends who lost their lives during the violence of the 1980’s. Individuals and families came to the church and lit candles in remembrance of their losses.

     Several times throughout the day, one of the priests walked through the church to bless the candles and to add his prayers to those of the people. During both All Saints Day and All Souls Day, the church bells rang slowly and continuously as a reminder to the community to pause and remember in prayer those who have passed on.

     At the cemetery, there was a Mass in memory of all the saints. A large canopy was erected at the sarcophagus of Father Thomas Cavanaugh, which became the altar. Before Mass began, several people collected and wrote down names of the deceased; they read these during several parts of the Mass. Hundreds of names were read as the youth group Alfa y Omega provided reflective music.

     The celebration of All Saints Day, and its continuation into All Souls Day, was a wonderful departure from the usual Halloween parties to which I am accustomed. (Of course, kids did go trick-or-treating, though on November 1, not October 31.) By far, the emphasis of these days was a celebration, not only of the life of the deceased while they were with us, but also of their eternal rest and life with God and of our own hope of one day joining with them in their infinite joy.