Dia de los Muertos

Aunt Judy

For my project, “Día de los Muertos” I decided to do my Aunt Judy who passed away on April 19th, 2012 from breast cancer. She was only fifty six years old. She got diagnosed with cancer in 2002. She didn’t have trouble with the cancer till a few years later. So she had to go through chemo, surgeries, cutting her hair and so much more. Cancer takes a lot of people but my aunt kept working, and taking care of her own three kids by herself. In March of 2013 my aunt was put into hospice. This meant the person lives at home, and has to be taking care of my family or nurses. On April 18th, we knew this was going to be the last time we had with my aunt. She couldn’t talk, she was in so much pain.

People always ask me “What did your aunt mean to you?” “Did she teach you anything?” I always think about these questions and sit and reflect on what my aunt has taught me and how this whole death affected my life. My Aunt Judy meant the world to me. Every time she walked into a room, the vibe in the room would just get better. She was one of the most important/ influential people you’d ever meet. Two things she taught me is no matter what life throws at you always remember to stay on your feet, and always live life to the fullest because you never know when the last time you’ll talk to someone. My aunt judy was a hardworking, bubbly, caring, loving person.

I decided to make my sugar skull and mask in remembrance of my aunt to show people what she was like and what she loved to do. For my mask, I colored it pink, and left some parts of it white. The reason I colored the mask pink is because my aunt had breast cancer. Around the eyes of my masks, and the cheeks I added heart stickers to symbolize and show that I loved my aunt. I used purple and pink hearts because purple was my aunt’s favorite color.

The sugar skulls reflects my aunt’s passion for the beach. She loved going to Wildwood, New Jersey every year. She loved the ocean, the sand, the food, the arcades, just everything there. I painted my sugar skull blue and yellow to represent the ocean and the sand. I added blue feathers to also represent the ocean, and used a seashell because my aunt liked seashell

Día de los Muertos has opened up my mind a lot about celebrating loved ones who past away. Before I got this project I thought Día de los Muertos was a bad holiday because it was the day of the dead. In my opinion, death is a horrible thing and it’s hard to bring up the memories of the person, and what happened to them. Día de los Muertos made me think about how it is okay to be happy and celebrate someone who meant a lot to you. On this day you shouldn’t be sad they’re gone, you should be happy that you’re celebrating someone you loved. I think after doing this project I am going to start doing Día de los Muertos in memory of my Aunt and Grandmother because I knew they would want us to celebrate their life and keep their  

legacy alive, and not be sad all the time.

Spanish Eulogy

Hola, Yo soy Stephanie Devlin.

Yo Soy sobrina de Judy’s.

Ella fue de Filadelfia. Mi tia vivió en Filadelfia de nordeste

Mi tia ha trabajado para el departamento de defensa

Mi tia trabajó durante treinta y cinco años

Ella era inteligente y bonita

Mi tía era una amable, trabajo duro y divertida mujer.

Estoy triste mi tia murio. Mi tía quiso decir el mundo para mí. No sé por qué se fue tan pronto. Pero sé que siempre estará conmigo

I am very sad my aunt died. My aunt meant the world to me. I don’t know why she had to leave so soon. But I know she will always be with me.