Cinco de Mayo is Spanish for “fifth of May.”
According to José Alamillo, professor of ethnic studies at Washington State University in Pullman, a 2006 study found more than 150 official events celebrating the day.
Celebrations surrounding the observance in the United States take on a significance beyond that in Mexico. They include displaying of banners and events highlighting Mexican culture, music, and regional dancing. School districts also hold special events to educate students about its historical significance. In the U.S., commercial interests acknowledge the day by celebrating Mexican products and services with an emphasis on beverages, food, and music.
And you have to acknowledge the incredible dancers wearing their cultural dresses. We lived in San Diego for 10 years and the annual events in Old Town were wonderful. The authentic bands, dances and attire inspired you to purchase hats, dresses and small bags. Wandering through the old missions and churches was wonderful and the flowers, both native and cultured. As kids, we loved the huge (to us) paper flowers. We would try to acquire 3-5 to decorate our rooms and remind us of the joy we experienced during the festivals.
Many of the buildings in the old town area have tile floors of every color. As adults, we’ve spent many an hour photographing those patterns and deciding how to do them differently. Our travel journals reflect some of the choices we made. And we’re talking about taking one last trip to Balboa Park.
My favorite place in the park is the Arboretum. Hundreds of plants and flowers – some bloom and some have strange appendiges that are their way of reproducing. But it was always peaceful, beautiful, and interesting.
All those life experiences have brought me here – to encouraging Journal Writing. Whether it’s about a special culture, gardening, scrapbooking, photography or motivation through coaching and guiding, I have the pleasure of helping you with your journey and writing about it.
Next week I’ll have more journals for you – tiny, paper, or digital. If you haven’t started your journal yet, be thinking about what you’d like to use and let me know.
Until then --