All Saints Day, Nov. 1, is a holiday in Guatemala that I can compare only to Thanksgiving in the US. Much of the celebration centers around food and family. The entire family seemed to be involved somehow in the preparation of “fiambre,” a salad of meat and vegetables, which is prepared only once a year and eaten on Nov. 1 & 2. Preparation begins almost a week ahead of time, when numerous trips are made to the “mercado” (market) to buy the multitude of vegetables used in this dish.
Days before the celebration, the preparation begins, with many family members coming over to help cut up the vegetables. The night before, Halloween, when many in the US are out collecting candy, the entire Hernandez family comes together for the final preparation. Cooking the meats and some of the vegetables, cooling them, cutting them, preparing the dressing for the salad takes up most of Halloween afternoon and evening.
There are a few trick-or-treaters here in Antigua, but mostly junior high age kids. Young adults here studying Spanish often dress up for this American holiday, and celebrate mostly in the bars in town. Interesting to observe, but too rowdy for my taste!
The morning of Nov. 1 begins with most of the family remembering those who have died. The process begins with another trip to the mercado, to buy wreaths and flowers, with which to decorate the graves.
We then walked to the local cemetery, and I experienced a type of family reunion. Extended family, who may not have seen each other in quite some time, are excited to see each other at their family’s graves. Each group brings flowers, and the family works together in decorating the headstones and grave markers. Those who can afford to are buried in mausoleums, due to the high water table in the country. Some are interred in what look like “coffin condos,” boxes built on top of each other, with the coffins inserted in each opening. Finally, the poor are buried in shallow graves, heaped with dirt to cover their coffins. Unlike in Mexico, food is not brought to the cemetery for the dead to “eat” as their spirits return to earth.
This process took most of the morning, and we arrived home just in time to prepare for the family dinner. The entire family as well as guests were each served a plate of fiambre, and for some this proved a challenge. There are some unusual vegetables and meats in this dish, but it proved to be quite tasty. After all the work the family had gone to over the previous week to prepare this, I think I would have choked it down even if it tasted horrible.
When I thought I could not eat another bite, the “postres” (desserts) were brought out. Molletes, fried bread filled with cheese, candied pumpkin, and “manzanias” (small berries similar to cherries, with multiple seeds) were the treat of the day. While the pumpkin looked somewhat forbidding, it proved to be rich and tasty. And the molletes are always my favorite!
After lunch, the kids in the family headed out to fly kites. This is a tradition carried over from the Mayans, who, believing spirits returned to earth on these days, used the rumpling sound of the kites blowing in the wind to scare away the “evil” spirits, while permitting the “good spirits” to enter into their communities. Now, though, it seems much more a time for parents to take a break and spend some time with the kids. And, as with kids everywhere, they are enchanted by the kites flying as high and fast as possible. A good way to work off dinner. . .
Since our last experience flying kites left us somewhat poorer, Dick and I decided to spend the afternoon with the kids at Hermano Pedro. We had a blast just holding, talking to, and playing with the kids. Though it was a holiday, they kids began demanding “trabajo” (work) the minute I appeared, and they were more than content to spend their holiday afternoon “working” with their activities.
Reflecting on the day, the theme of this celebration is community—whether family, extended family, friends, or the community at large. These rituals bind the Guatemalans in a common celebration of their heritage.
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