November 1, 2026 – November 2, 2026
Día de los Muertos — Day of the Dead
Two days when the door between the living and the loved-and-lost stands a little open — built around ofrendas, marigolds, and the names you say out loud so they aren't forgotten.
Día de los Muertos isn't a sad day. It's a family reunion that includes the ones who got there first.
November 1st is Día de los Inocentes, for children who have died. November 2nd is for everyone else. In Mexico and across the diaspora, families build an *ofrenda* at home — a small altar layered with photographs, marigold petals, water, bread, salt, sugar skulls, and the favorite foods of the person being remembered. The marigolds (*cempasúchil*) are the path. The food is the welcome.
For diaspora kids, the ofrenda is often the first time they see a photograph of a great-grandparent and learn their name. It's the night a story gets told that they'll repeat for the rest of their life — about how their grandfather laughed, what their great-aunt cooked on Sundays, why the family left and where they came from.
Start with one photograph, one name, one piece of food. Tell the story. The kid will fill in the rest.