Third birthdays. Of all the subjects my cultural education has yet to encompass, I had no idea that this was one of them. My niece Zoe turned 3 on Saturday. Her mom spent the last couple months working herself to exhaustion, to give her a proper celebration. I thought she meant good food, a cake, some presents. This after all is a household that lives without running water. I was wrong.
Arriving in Mazatepec on Saturday afternoon, I found the old schoolbus (only transport from Xalapa) didn't turn up their part of the road as usual. When I backtracked and walked in, I found the road was blocked - with special advance permission from the transport office in the next town - with tables and chairs, potted plants, and shaded by a giant tarp with a Corona logo. DJs were stacking amps on the sidewalk and playing music from old laptops. Balloons framed a banner with photos of Zoe, behind a table draped in purple bearing FIVE tres leches cakes, each topped with a different fruit, boxes of marshmallow bouquets, and gelatinas of every color. Neighbors already arriving were served plates heaped with rich mole and chicken or pork (they had bought a pig from a neighbor, and had it butchered), rice, tamales, and tortillas handmade on the comal.
Zoe was a princess right out of a fairy tale, shimmery purple floor-length dress, hair intricately styled, and a tiara. After the first round of guests ate, the DJs played "Las Mañanitas" as her father brought out FOUR piñatas, one after the other. When cake was served, the parents toasted Zoe and all the guests in matching glasses bought new for the occasion. Her father borrowed the mic from the DJs, whispered in her ear, and handed it to her so she could say "Thank you all for coming to my party".
All afternoon, more guests arrived and ate. I'm pretty sure the whole town came through at some point. Many brought nice gifts, which they must have had to go to Xalapa to buy, as there are no real stores in Mazatepec. When it got dark the DJs packed up and made way for a local cumbia band featuring Zoe's uncle on keyboards. People danced (and kept eating) til 1 a.m. The food didn't begin to run out, either, and the next day bags were packed up and distributed among friends and neighbors til it was all gone.
When I asked her mom, why the third birthday , she only said, "It means we're grateful for her having life so far..and that she's changing from a baby to a little girl." That's some kind of gratitude. I've never seen any celebration in the states that holds a candle to this. I didn't dance, other than one song with mi hermana. Spent a fine evening upstairs with my nephew and a dozen cousins, playing tag, blind man's bluff, and a terrific stuffed-animal battle. I won't mention either how I dealt with the noise levels - ha - but I was grateful all the same that Life, somehow, connected me with a family that sure enough knows how to celebrate.
Arriving in Mazatepec on Saturday afternoon, I found the old schoolbus (only transport from Xalapa) didn't turn up their part of the road as usual. When I backtracked and walked in, I found the road was blocked - with special advance permission from the transport office in the next town - with tables and chairs, potted plants, and shaded by a giant tarp with a Corona logo. DJs were stacking amps on the sidewalk and playing music from old laptops. Balloons framed a banner with photos of Zoe, behind a table draped in purple bearing FIVE tres leches cakes, each topped with a different fruit, boxes of marshmallow bouquets, and gelatinas of every color. Neighbors already arriving were served plates heaped with rich mole and chicken or pork (they had bought a pig from a neighbor, and had it butchered), rice, tamales, and tortillas handmade on the comal.
Zoe was a princess right out of a fairy tale, shimmery purple floor-length dress, hair intricately styled, and a tiara. After the first round of guests ate, the DJs played "Las Mañanitas" as her father brought out FOUR piñatas, one after the other. When cake was served, the parents toasted Zoe and all the guests in matching glasses bought new for the occasion. Her father borrowed the mic from the DJs, whispered in her ear, and handed it to her so she could say "Thank you all for coming to my party".
All afternoon, more guests arrived and ate. I'm pretty sure the whole town came through at some point. Many brought nice gifts, which they must have had to go to Xalapa to buy, as there are no real stores in Mazatepec. When it got dark the DJs packed up and made way for a local cumbia band featuring Zoe's uncle on keyboards. People danced (and kept eating) til 1 a.m. The food didn't begin to run out, either, and the next day bags were packed up and distributed among friends and neighbors til it was all gone.
When I asked her mom, why the third birthday , she only said, "It means we're grateful for her having life so far..and that she's changing from a baby to a little girl." That's some kind of gratitude. I've never seen any celebration in the states that holds a candle to this. I didn't dance, other than one song with mi hermana. Spent a fine evening upstairs with my nephew and a dozen cousins, playing tag, blind man's bluff, and a terrific stuffed-animal battle. I won't mention either how I dealt with the noise levels - ha - but I was grateful all the same that Life, somehow, connected me with a family that sure enough knows how to celebrate.
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