We invite you to join us for an evening of remembering those who are no longer here in physical form but who live in our hearts and memories. We will tell stories about these beings who were significant to us, even talk to them directly if that is our pleasure. There will be room for laughter, for tears, and for all the openings and closings that come when we share our stories.

Inspired by the rich traditions of Mexico, we will have an offerenda, a visual remembrance connected to those who have died. Feel free to bring flowers, objects, and photos, anything that represents the spirit of those you want to honor and helps your stories come alive for you and for us. In the Mexican tradition, people offer food and drink that the deceased enjoyed. You are welcome to do the same.

In these few hours we take time to touch into the mystery called life and death, to renew and celebrate our connection to what has been and what remains within us.

“When you talk about family, about lineage and ancestry, you are talking about every person on earth.”  ~Alex Haley

Workshop Hours:
Friday, Oct 30, 7 – 10 PM
Doors will open 30 minutes prior to starting time.

There is no charge for participation, but because of limited space, you do need to make a reservation. To register, send an email with your name, address, and cell phone number to registration@tribalground.org.

In Mexico, the Day of the Dead is thought to be the time when the ghosts of ancestors return from their graves. Unlike the American Halloween where the tradition is to be frightened of the spirits, Mexicans welcome them with open arms. A celebration is held over several days with November 1 and 2 the most significant times.

A proper welcome for the spirits includes the construction of an elaborate altar called an offerenda, created to honor deceased relatives and friends. The altar is decorated with photographs of the departed, candles, flowers, liquor and money. Poems are written to honor the dead and there may be an all night party in the graveyard with music and dancing.

Long ago, the Celtic New Year also celebrated a similar sense that the veil between the physical and spirit world was more permeable at this time of year. Villagers would extinguish their hearth fires and come to a communal bonfire (originally bone fire) to make offerings. A coal from this central fire was then used to reignite each family fire, acknowledging that life is extinguished and then rekindled from a shared source.