The Dia de Los Muertos is less
than a month away, and there's an
opportunity here in San Diego to get
a head start on an important way
to honor your departed loved ones.
Joining us this morning is Daniel
Pozos from Dia del Dia del Cafe,
but also an instructor of what
we're gonna be talking about today.
Basically, how you can get a head
start earlier on this month and
how we can honor those loved ones.
So thank you for being with us.
Thank you for having this.
I want you to start off by telling
us what Dia de Los Muertos is and
what it's it's meant to symbolize.
Well, the other was.
Purposes and Mexican tradition
that goes back thousands of years,
and it's there to honor the life
of loved ones who have passed.
As Mexicans believe.
There's three types of deaths.
The ones, the physical one,
the one where you're not
longer visited and the one
you're completely forgotten.
So we make sure every year to remember
those loved ones who have passed.
And we've had an impact on
our lives in the community.
And obviously, a lot of us know it,
and especially people who are not part of
the Mexican community probably know it.
Coinciding with Halloween.
Yeah, you were saying? Predates?
Yeah. And and the Americas.
It predates Halloween.
This is more of real reuniting
with their loved ones.
It's nothing scary.
It's about life.
It's a celebration of life. Yeah.
And that's what that's about.
So making these altars is obviously very
intricate in terms of the process and and
the time that people spend going into it.
So Dia Del Cafe is gonna be the place
where a couple of events are gonna be
taking place over the next couple of weeks.
One starting what, next Wednesday?
Yes, the first one.
And then from there you'll have several
ones that looks like moving forward.
So what's the goal of these events?
Is it to to teach people how to
put these altars together? Yes.
It's to teach people the history,
the culture, and everyone could do it, right?
This is Mexico's gift to the world,
right? We just no longer have
a cuisine and everything else.
We also have this, and we want
everyone to learn and participate
at home. So let's walk through
what people are gonna learn.
You set up an awesome display here. OK.
So is this how an altar would look?
Yes. There's different types of altars.
This is a more common.
On the three levels, the three tiers,
there's seven, there's four.
But we have to have four basic
things on here, elements.
We have to have water,
we have to have air, we have to
have fire and we have to have Earth.
And that's represented the waters
represented to something liquid.
The other cafe coffee, of course.
Yeah, the candles are represent fire.
OK Papel picado that represents the wind
and how do we represent Earth, the food?
Yeah, that's how we give it.
So these are pre Columbian
symbols and they're here today.
With us in 2022, the levels are as as this.
The first one here is the heaven
level where the people who have died,
you put their pictures up here we have
Father Brown and Father Hemet Asuda,
who were pivotal in the Chicano
movement in Barrio Logan.
OK, and then we have all the
Saints and things like that.
The second part is Earth and also
the things that the loved ones loved.
I know Father Brown loved Mazapan
and Mexican candy, right?
We have the traditional pan
dulce and the sugar skulls.
And here the bottom one is
the entrance to the altar.
Are these called niche? Niche, exactly.
So these Nichols are like small
like shadow boxes. Small little
alters you display or you carry with
you and that's gonna be also one
of the lessons that are coming.
There's a three-part series we're
gonna do these you, you participate
in the classroom or the history,
the culture and you walk away with your
own. And also is flowers
are part of it too. Yes.
So these flower crowns will
also be part of the classes.
OK these will be made and we'll
explain the history. And why?
And you walk home with your own unique
flower crown. This is so cool.
And I imagine. I mean,
is this geared toward maybe the
younger generation who hasn't had
experience or just for anyone? It's
for everyone.
Our hope is that the younger generations
take this up and continue this tradition.
But it's for everyone, right?
Again, I'll reiterate.
This is Mexico's gift to the world.
Yeah, it's a healing process.
It's something personal to talk about.
A loved one. Yeah.
But when you share it with the community,
you know, it's it hurts a little less, right?
Remind us where people can go.
Do people need to sign up?
Advance is there.
They they could go.
There's a minimal cost to it.
But if you follow La Mexicana
events on Instagram or the
other cafe at Tony Rellas,
yeah, they're amazing.
And they're the ones who
brought us here and Julio
also who brought us out here.
So we're thankful for that.
Shout out to Julio. We love Julio.
Yeah. Your Instagram page has a list
of all of those locations, times,
times and the fees and everything associated.
I mean, we only have about
30 seconds left before we go.
I mean, what does it mean to you? Do you?
It's life. I remember celebrating
as a kid and learning about
my family, my grandmother.
To do this and she'd be doing
answer for her great grandparents.
There we go. So that would be for me.
I was connected connecting with them.
Awesome. Samuel, thank you for being.
Thank you. Shout out to your
students that are thank you,
guys, students, thank you.