FALL IN AJIJIC

I thought I’d be writing about Día de Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, for this post. About how it was different from two years ago. But, honestly, I just didn’t enjoy it much this year, not after the magic of 2019. Color me spoiled. I didn’t go to the cemetery because they were only allowing 10 people in at a time to celebrate with their loved ones. The usual all day celebration with food, drink, and music was banned so I figured local folks needed to be in that cemetery a lot more than I did. Still, I suspect that’s where the true celebration was happening. That and the lighting of the wall of candles after dark. But we were home by then, not willing to stand in the narrow space between the church and the wall with a crowd.

Streets that were honored with numerous ofrendas (altars) in 2019 saw few this years. And the tapetes de aserrin – sawdust carpets – that graced the streets below the plaza in 2019 were sorely absent this year. Instead there was a solemn parade of Catrinas on the ciclopista (bike path) running parallel to our main street. We managed that crowd by moving frequently and leaving quickly.

The Friday and Saturday following that Tuesday celebration were honored with crafts from Mexican artisans at sales held at Lake Chapala Society. LCS, as we call it, is a local organization sitting on property near the lake donated years ago by an adventuresome woman named Neill James. But that is a story for another day. LCS offers classes, information, events, medical screening, a library and a second hand book/DVD store, among other things. For many of us who move here it is a lifeline.

Two years ago I posted a blog about the Feria Maestros del Arte, an amazing annual event held in nearby Chapala each November. Many of the 70-80 artisans, coming from all over México, made their entire year’s salary at that event. Covid, of course, put an end to that for now. So LCS stepped in to offer a space and time for “mini ferias” to be held. Artisans cannot afford to come for such a small event (two 4 hour days) so local LCS members volunteer to man the tables of crafts shipped from distant areas of México to be sold. At this latest of three events a few ceramic artists came from Tonalá, a craft community on the outskirts of Guadalajara, about an hour away. All the money from sales goes to the artisans. Ceramics, fabrics, toys, jewelry, and paintings are among the items available. Many of us miss the annual event and appreciate the opportunity to support the artisans in this way.

Other events are coming up in December and January. I imagine they will be smaller than usual also. Meanwhile, I’m enjoying fall in México. Ben is in North Carolina for two weeks where it’s cold and gray and often rainy. I’m gloating a bit as I walk Tumi each morning, capturing the feeling and colors of fall here in the Central Highlands. Cornstalks dried from the intense sun rustle in the light breeze. Most have been chopped down with machetes, fragments left as fodder for horses to enjoy. Poinsettias are coming into full bloom while morning glories wind their way through Mexican sunflowers and bougainvillea.

The rainy season ended just after our traumatic floods a few weeks ago, floods that left many with partially or completely destroyed homes and roads damaged and impassible. It was heartwarming to see how the gringo residents kicked in to help those in need. An opportunity to give back, to be part of the larger community of what we call Lakeside.

The air is dry now, with dust kicking up from car wheels and lush green foliage turning to shades of gray and brown. Most of us here like the rainy season best, but even now Nature is still in bloom, still filled with birdsong and gorgeous sunsets of pink, blue, and lavender clouds over the lake and mountains. The nights are cool in the 40’s-50’s but the sun when you live at 5200′ is intense by late morning.

We’ll settle in for the winter now, well, until we go to the beach next month. Meanwhile a few friends will gather here with us for Thanksgiving and we will be grateful for them, all we have around us, and the opportunity to be part of another culture.