Originating in Mexico, Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated for a few days after Halloween. Since the holiday is associated with skeletons and skulls, I figured it was a Mexican version of Halloween.
Not so. Dia de los Muertos is a reunion between the living and the departed, and the ancestors are the guests of honor. It’s a holiday celebrating life along with death, though it doesn’t focus on grief but on celebrating the wonder of life and our voyages along its winding road.
The macabrely decorated skeletons and skulls aren’t to scare, but to remind us to celebrate the present and get on with our lives, as we’ll be with the departed soon enough.
Families meet at ancestral gravesites for a party during which they create offerings to honor them, clean their graves, and picnic to tell stories about the departed.
They decorate the graves with candles and marigold petals and photos of loved ones. This is how they keep the departed alive in their families – with the storytelling that will be passed down the generations while creating more memories with family members at the grave site fiestas.
It is a very human ability to transform our life into emotions. That sense of continuity and transference of emotions is what I do with my clients creating jewelry as a legacy to be passed down the generations. A jeweled message in a bottle to those who come after.
Your jewelry is a tangible link from the past to the present and into the future. Don’t leave your jewelry in a dark box – wear it so loved ones will tie memories to it.
Like the families gathering celebrating the deceased with stories around their gravesites, tell stories about your jewelry. How did you get your jewel? What does it mean to you? What is it made of? How did you feel when you first wore it?
In this way, regular jewelry transforms into “family jewels” and a jewelry box becomes a treasure chest of the most meaningful kind.
Could you use help navigating the gem and jewelry world? I can usually very quickly get a sense of what you’re needing and offer you the best direction to get what you need. Email me or schedule a Virtual Appointment (no obligation) below.
