When someone looks at Marigolds they think about Dia de los muertos or day of the dead and they are not wrong. Marigolds are the usual flower that is used on the day of the dead, you can usually see them in altars made for loved ones or you can see them being used as decoration. Marigolds represent my family because my mother and father are Mexican immigrants that have been celebrating the day of the dead all their life. That is what they grew up with and what they have shown and taught me and my brother. My mother talks about going through the desert and having to share a water bottle with other people including my aunt, uncle, and two others. They followed the “coyote”. Coyotes are people that help other people migrate to the United States. My father came to the United States by plane landing in Phoenix and from there an uncle helped him to Illinois. From the day they immigrated to the United States they brought their culture and traditions along with them. I have grown to always think about my loved ones that have passed whenever I see Marigolds, they have been a part of my whole life and my mother and father and will continue on for generations to come.  

– Melisa

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant