Fading Traditions

She pulled out three Kodak photos out of a white envelope and pointed at the blurred figures in the photos.

“That is my daughter, and the boy next to her is my son. They are both grown-ups now,” she said.

She caressed the photos, the girl with the white dress, white stockings, white shoes and white bows and the boy in a slightly oversized brown suit. The photos were taken on the day that her daughter and son went to the Holy Ghost celebration, an annual Catholic festival, for the first time twenty years ago.

To print center technician Maria Ricardo, the details of her children’s first Holy Ghost celebration have faded through time just as the faded photos — and what time also washes away is her children’s link to the Catholic traditions, an unavoidable trend through the generations.

Ricardo came to America in the year 1975 when she was only 18 years old. She met her husband and had two children, Elizabeth and Daniel Ricardo. Maria recalls that her religious faith helped her through the early years of her journey in America.

“When you have a religion, you have a good way to deal with issues,” Maria said. “You have hope.”

Maria’s piety roots in her childhood. As a child, she went to the Holy Ghost celebration each year and participated in the preparation, which often started a week before the celebration. Sacrificing five or six cows for each county, baking sweet bread, buying firecrackers, the rituals involved a lot of work, yet for Maria, the celebration never failed to excite her.

“When I was younger, we didn’t have much, maybe that’s why the celebration seemed so special,” she said.

Because of the deep imprint of these traditional celebrations, Maria tried to foster a Catholic root in her children. She sent them to Catholic schools, taught them to pray every day and brought them to the annual Holy Ghost celebration when they were both around the age of ten, expecting them to enjoy it just as she did as a child. Yet, after their first celebration, Elizabeth went only once three years later, and Daniel never went again.

Slightly disappointed, Maria did not force her children to go to these celebrations anymore because she does not want religious tradition to become a forced obligation. She does expect them to pray every day, however, because she believes that faith helps them overcome challenges in life.

“When I first came to America, I went to these celebrations because of my social needs… Through these activities I can connect with the people from my country; and this relationship can last for many, many years,” Maria said. “But my children are different… they rely less on the church and have more of a connection to the outside world.”

Ricardo looked back down at the faded Kodak photos. Nowadays, Kodak photos are becoming obsolete, but what also is fading away is the Catholic tradition.

“Some of the celebration halls might close as the younger generation stops going to these celebrations,” she said.