The Skeptic Who Learned to Celebrate Death

Once upon a time, there was a little girl in Venezuela who didn’t celebrate Halloween.Sure, every now and then she saw costumes on the street, maybe a school event here and there, but for her—and most people she knew—it wasn’t really a tradition.And Día de Muertos? That wasn’t even part of her world.It sounded strange.Foreign.Maybe even dark.Definitely something “other people did.”That little girl grew up.And years later, she moved to Mexico.Unknowingly, she stepped into a country where death meant something different.Where altars weren’t scary—they were sacred.Where flowers weren’t for mourning—they were invitations.Where death wasn’t denied—it was honored.At first, she—me—didn’t get it.How could people celebrate death?How could they sing, cook, laugh, light candles for people who were… gone?But year by year, something shifted.Not all at once.Slowly—like incense smoke rising through the air.It happened as I watched the ofrendas.Smelled the pan de muerto.Heard the songs people left for their abuelas.I started to understand that this wasn’t about death at all.It was about the life that keeps echoing.Today, I celebrate Día de Muertos like it’s always been mine.I celebrate with my wife, with close friends, with people who used to be as skeptical as I was.And I don’t do it because I have to.I do it because I want to.Because it heals me.Because it reminds me that love doesn’t disappear.And that some connections keep finding their way back.I don’t need a specific day to remember the people I’ve loved.I carry them with me all the time.But this day gives me a beautiful excuse to light a candle, play a song, set out a flower.To be present.To cry, yes—but also to smile.To say: I haven’t forgotten you.And just like in the movie Coco—which people often think is just for kids—I’ve learned that as long as there’s memory, there’s presence.And that’s not scary.That’s sacred.So yes, I used to be a skeptic.Now I build my altar with pride.Because I’ve learned that celebrating the dead…is just another way of honoring life.