Week 5: Ofelia Esparza

Ofelia Esparza came to our class today and spoke about her life's work. Lots of her work focused on making altares, which are used to remember loved ones that have passed away. A saying that really resonated with me was when Ofelia Esparza said, "We live three deaths. The first is when you give your last breathe. The second death is when you are buried. And the final and third death is being forgotten." 

This quote gave me a new perspective on death. Never had I thought about it like this before. When someone is no longer in our lives, because of death, we still hold memories of them. These cherished memories and stories of them make it feel like they are still there. I can speak from personal experience; when my grandmother passes away I was sad. But looking back on the memories we had and the jokes we told, and the stories we had, I am filled with a peace and closure. 

This is also expressed though Ofelia Esparza's art. She speaks of her great grandmother and says that even though she had never met her, through the stories her mother told her, she feels like she knows her and feels her very close. This life lesson has taught me, although life goes on, we need to know what our roots are; we need to know where we came from and need to also pass this down to our children.