We had lots of kids, and I do mean kids, this evening. And strangely for us most of them were Hispanic... so in the paper I read today...

Get set for Day of the Dead in Dallas
12:23 AM CDT on Saturday, November 1, 2008
By DIANNE SOLÍS / The Dallas Morning News dsolis@dallasnews.com
The jack-o'-lanterns have faded and the goblins have retreated, with Halloween giving way to Días de los Muertos, the Mexican homage to the departed.
But it's not always easy to distinguish between the two celebrations, which run for three consecutive days (Halloween on Oct. 31 and Day of the Dead on Nov. 1-2).
Then there's the blended commercialization of the two – at Mexican bakeries and upscale supermarkets, traditional pan de muerto loaves mingle with black-cat cookies.
Latinos agree there's room for both. But many would like to put some distance between the popcorn balls and the chicken mole, a traditional Day of the Dead dish.
"I see the influence of Halloween as very natural," said Patricia Urbina, director of Teatro Flor Candela.
"[But] the act of doing an altar is an act of great love. Halloween is about scariness, blood, darkness and devils. It is the opposite of our Day of the Dead."
At the Latino Cultural Center, Día de los Muertos kicks off tonight with an indigenous-influenced play directed by Ms. Urbina.
Traditionally, Mexico's Dias de los Muertos represents a syncretic mix of Roman Catholicism and indigenous beliefs. Events are tied to All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day, but many rituals are pre-Hispanic.
The iconic symbol of the celebrations is an altar with offerings to the departed, featuring elements of nature.
The altars can include favorite foods from the earth, fluttering paper cutouts called papel picado to represent wind, candles to symbolize fire and a liquid or beverage to signify water.
In recent years, the Internet has fueled the popularity of Day of the Dead traditions and led to elaborate celebrations in non-Latino communities.
"This fiesta is very organic," Ms. Urbina said. "All of us feel love for those who have passed on."
An exhibit of Day of the Dead art at the Bath House Cultural Center, which began three weeks ago, is now its biggest event of the year, and most of the artists lack Spanish surnames. More than 500 visitors attended the opening.
Enrique Fernández, the show's curator, said he sees the exhibit as an emotional canvas for artists of any culture to express their appreciation for someone no longer living.
Try as some might to keep Días de Los Muertos separate from Halloween, some children in Mexico City spent Friday embracing All Saints' Eve:
They wore scary costumes and carried plastic pumpkins.