(lively salsa music) ♪ Eh eh g üey ♪ Eh eh g üey ♪ Eh g üey (music ends) - Good evening, and welcome to Horizonte a show that takes a look at current issues through a Hispanic lens.

I'm your host, Catherine Anaya.

Dia de los Muertos is a Mexican day to remember and honor those who have passed on in a joyous manner.

It's a holiday that is gaining in popularity in the US.

Award-winning picture book artist Xelena González has a new book out that shows us how Dia de los Muertos traditions can honor pets.

Her new book, Remembering, tells the story of a family that commemorates a beloved dog that has passed.

Here to talk more about the inspiration behind it is Xelena González.

Nice to have you here!

Thank you so much.

- Thank you.

Thank you for having me.

- Well, this is such a beautiful book.

I just love it.

And I love the fact that I think pretty much anyone can relate to it because we've either lost a pet or, you know, will at some point.

I have a dog.

I think about it, it makes me so emotional.

What inspired you to merge the topic of losing a pet with Dia de Los Muertos?

Because I've never seen the two really written about.

- Yeah.

So I've, this is my third book that I've created with my good friend Adriana M. Garcia.

We both live in Yanaguana in San Antonio, and we have enjoyed creating a couple of picture books together.

After our first picture book came out, we received a lot of success and we were having a great year and making a living as independent artists.

And I lost my cat Buju at that time.

I had her for 17 years.

She was my best pet friend as I would call her.

And then Adriana lost her dog, Simon, shortly after after 14 years of friendship.

- Wow.

- So we were both, you know, celebrating these individual successes, personal successes in our art and then also had these, these hard losses.

So when we were looking at what story to tell next that was something that came up.

I built an ofrenda for my cat outside and I cried, had a good cry, and I knew she was grieving Simon more recently.

And so I wrote it as a poem to console my friend and my own heart.

Quite often pet loss is the first real loss that a child will experience.

- Yes.

- And children are a lot of- big part of the audience for picture books.

I do think the books are for everyone, but as far as the tradition, you know, depending on where what part you're from or where your family traditions are Dia de Muertos is a two day event.

And the first day, quite often, is reserved for the innocents.

Dia de los Inocentes or los Angelitos, right.

The angels or the innocents.

And so sometimes that means children, people who haven't made it into adulthood, and it also means pets.

So those innocent, pure spirits, that unconditional love.

So that's where that idea comes from.

- It's so beautiful.

I mean, really just a beautiful moving book.

Can you explain to people who aren't familiar with the traditions, how ofrendas, or offerings help us process the grief and really find the joy in the person or the pet that has moved on?

You know, how that can help, especially in this book particularly, a child who may not necessarily understand how to process all of those emotions.

- Well, I've long felt that Dia de Muertos and the customs behind it is one of the best gifts that the indigenous Mexican culture has to offer humanity at large.

Because death is something that we all face.

And I feel like quite often in our Western or American society, we fear it and we run from it, and we're afraid to talk about it, and we're afraid to talk to children about it.

But it's a part of the bigger circle.

It's a part of that cycle.

And so I love that comfort with death, right?

That acknowledgement that it's a part of life and the tradition that has a lot of joyous elements.

And it has this welcoming component where we welcome back the spirits of our loved ones, if only for those, that two day celebration.

So there is, it's beautifully drawn out in the illustrations that Adriana provided.

And then in the back of the book there's an invitation to build your own ofrenda as well.

- Yes.

- So just that welcoming, laying out of food, of water.

There are the elements, the water, fire, air and earth that is explained both in the back of the book, but also with the items that the family is gathering for that ofrenda, for that offering.

- Yes.

You see the family, the little girl, where she's collecting all of these very important items that express, you know, her love for her pet and her pet in general, her beloved dog that she has lost.

And so in the back of the book, like you said, you do offer these suggestions.

Can you just give us an idea of some of those items that we may look for if we're trying to create an ofrenda for a pet that we've lost?

Because it's not necessarily what's inside, but also what's outside, right?

- Yeah, absolutely.

So generally, you know, I think that ofrendas there are people who are like, oh no, these colors in this way.

And an interesting thing about the book is that we talked about it a lot.

Some ofrendas do not have pictures of the living on them.

They will only have the person or animal who's passed away or you'll have a covering over the living person.

This isn't everyone.

Usually the four elements that's common everywhere.

You wanna have something that person or that spirit enjoyed in life, right?

So if they had a favorite snack or a hobby, right?

So like my cat would have a little toy mouse or a box.

Cats love playing with boxes and places to hide, right?

Maybe a favorite toy for a dog.

Things of that, of that nature.

Cempasuchil is always a big part of it.

The marigold flowers, that's brought in from the old indigenous traditions and the incense, the fire, which of course we have to be careful with if there's youngsters.

(Catherine laughing) - Yes.

- I do wanna point out something that you said because it's become an interesting topic.

You mentioned the little girl.

So the model that Adriana used, the family that she used, it's a little boy in her danzante group.

- Oh!

- And so the little boy has long hair.

He's from her native group, but it's totally cool, but it's come up multiple times where people will assume it's a young girl.

- Interesting.

Because you don't say it's a little girl.

- Yeah, no.

- And you don't say it's a little boy.

- Yeah 'cause it's written to the, it's written, ah- see, now here's my writer voice in second person, right?

(Catherine laughing) Where you're saying you and we're talking to the spirit who has passed.

- Yes.

- But yeah, it's come up or people will ask, right.

Is it a little boy or a little girl?

And it's interesting because it's like, well does it matter?

You know?

- Right.

- Because grief is grief and loss is loss.

And so it's been, it's an unintended thing that has come up.

But a good thing, especially as we explore some of those changing terms and dynamics.

- Well, because now that you mention it, the character doesn't have a name in the book.

- Right.

- And so that was not intentional.

- Well, it wasn't intentional as far as like, oh, you know, let's have a- let's illustrate a character where you can't really- that part was not intentional.

But as far as writing it to the pet, yes of course.

That was what I, - Right.

but it is unusual in a picture book.

Yeah.

- Interesting.

Well, I did not pick up on that.

- No, that's okay.

- That is just fascinating.

And I just love that, that's really beautiful that has come from what you didn't set out to- maybe create with a conversation, but it certainly has opened itself up to that.

So I think that's wonderful.

Going back to the story for just a second because it is diverse, like I said, it's not something I've seen very often.

What has been the reaction from readers and just the book community in general?

- That's been, well, it's a brand new book, so it's only been out about six weeks now, but we're in our third printing already.

So that reaction has been really, we're really happy about that.

That people are finding the book and bringing it into their homes.

I do think it's special.

I think it brings a little dose of medicine to families who might be grieving or might be, you know, knowing that, that loss is gonna come.

And maybe they're just wanting to understand more about this cultural tradition because even if it's not a pet that we've lost, we've all lost someone.

And they might want to see what an ofrenda looks like whether it's for a pet or a human.

But the little bit that I've shared it with audiences, I'll be honest, it's been a little tough because - Really?

- Yeah.

There's tears, you know, and so the first time I shared a sneak peek with a school group, they had read our first two books.

And I involve a lot of like, levity and music and movement.

And so we're all kind of lifted up and it's like, do you wanna take a look at our next book?

And inevitably there's been at least one kid just in tears or the librarian or the teacher.

- I could appreciate that.

- Yeah.

It's a hard one.

So I've been struggling a little bit with how to present that when I do present it to bigger audiences as I will be in Tucson soon.

Yeah.

How do I leave a little balm on their hearts?

Right.

- Well, I think the most important thing probably is just reminding people that the celebration is really about honoring our loved ones in a joyous way.

- Absolutely.

- And that includes our pets.

- Yes.

And so in the book, you know we see the- picture frames come alive, right?

And we see the family experiencing the full range of emotion from like missing them, but also like laughing and remembering those good times and the funny stories.

And so I think Adriana did a beautiful job also showing that change in the book and the pages brightening up and the spirit seeing all of this.

- Yes.

It's very obvious.

And you both did such a wonderful job.

Thank you so much for sharing that story with the world.

'cause I think, you know, when I have to go through that situation, it's books like these that are gonna help us get through it.

So, thank you so much.

- Absolutely.

- Yes.

And I wanna remind people that the book is called Remembering and they can find it wherever books are sold.

- Wherever books are sold.

- Really a pleasure to meet you.

- Oh!

- Thank you so much.

- It's been great talking to you.

- Yes.

- Thank you for having me.

- I appreciate it.

And that's our show for tonight.

For Horizonte and Arizona PBS, I'm Katherine Anaya.

And thank you so much for watching.

Have a great night.

(lively salsa music) ♪ Eh eh g üey ♪ Eh eh g üey ♪ Eh g üey (music ends)