tless English

I arrive in Guatemala on The Day of the Dead, November 1st.  I’m curious about this holiday, so I go

to the cemetery to see what’s happening.  What I find is quite interesting. 

The atmosphere is like a party.  There are people everywhere.  Families are sitting around the

graves of their dead ancestors.  They clean the graves and add fresh flowers.  I walk through the

cemetery and admire the beauty of all the colorful flowers.  

There is also color in the sky, because many kids are flying kites.  Some families are having a picnic

next to the graves.  They eat, drink, and chat together.  People laugh and smile.  

In the Unites States, cemeteries are always somber.  We certainly never have festivals or parties

next to graves.  We don’t laugh or play music or fly kites in cemeteries either.  

I find that I prefer the Guatemalan approach.  I like the way they remember and celebrate those

who have passed away.  I like that they acknowledge death, instead of denying it the way

Americans do.  I like that there is life, as well as death, in their cemeteries.  

Guatemalans call it “The Day of the Dead”, but it is also a day to appreciate life.  

                              VOCABULARY

Day of the dead Vocaburary 

Ok! This is the vocabulary for day of the dead. So the day of the dead. 

I arrive in Guatemala on The Day of the Dead, November 1st. I’m curious about 

this holiday...  

holiday is the normal word we use for a festival. some people  say festival but 

holiday is more commom. Christmas is a holiday. Halloween is a holiday. So 

holiday is commom word, the most commom word we use. ok? 

So I say: I'm curious about this holiday, so I go to the cemetery... 

Cemetery is a place for dead people. Many, many dead people in a cemetery 

*&¨*&¨* cemetery it's right! the place for dead peolple. cemetery! so large area 

usually large place. Cemetery. Ok! 

The next paragraph I say the atmosphere is like a party... 

here atmosphere means the general feeling of a place. E.G. I might say this house 

has a happy atmosphere. what means the place has a happy feeling, maybe it's a 

very HORMY* maybe a lot of nice people there. many reasons but the atmosphere 

means the feeling of a place. 

So, the cemetery had an atmosphere, a feeling like a party. Many people 

everywhere. And people were sitting around the graves of their dead ancestors.  

Grave, Grave is a place were one dead person is buried. One dead person is in a 

grave, one dead body is in a grave. Many graves in a cemetery. Right! So a 

cemetery has many, many graves. So which grave has one body. and then many 

grave in a cemetery. ok! 

Sitting around the graves of their dead ancestors. And ancestor is a person who 

comes before you in your family E.G. your grandfather or  grandmother is an 

ancestor, or your great grandmother is an ancestor. So, All the people in your 

family older than you who came before you these people are your ancestor. 

They clean the graves and add fresh flowers (the families clean the graves). And I 

walk around through the cemetery and admire(I appreciate, I like, I admire) the 

beauty of all the colorful flowers.  

There is also color in the sky, because many kids (kids means children, so many 

children many kids) are flying kites (kites are paper or plastic with string and you 

fly then in the wind usually children fly kites). Some families are having a picnic 

next to the graves. 

picnic is when you eat outside. Right? Eat outside with many people. there is a 

picnic. Ok? They eat, drink, and chat together. They laugh and smile. This is 

different then Usa. In the Usa cemeteries are always somber. somber means very 

serious somber! Serious and not fun. somber in American in the Usa cemeteries are 

somber. They are somber. very serious not fun.  

We certainly never have festivals or parties next to graves. We don’t laugh or play 

music or fly kites in cemeteries either.  

And I say: 

I find that I prefer the Guatemalan approach. I find that...  

here find means realize. I realize that, I prefer the guatemalan approuch, I find, I 

realize. I find that, I understand that I prefer. ok? so here find has a different 

meaning than normal. a little bit.  

So, I find that I prefer the guatemalan approuch. 

approuch! here approuch means way. Ok? I prefer the Guatemaln way. the 

guatemaln method. I prefer the guatemalan way. I prefer the guatemalan approuch. 

Ok? 

I Like the way they remember and celebrate those who have passed away.  

passed away. to passed away means to die. it's very polite very polite and very soft 

way to say die. so, if someone (someone's) mother dies you can say: I am sorry 

your mother passed away. I am sorry your mom passed away. I am sorry she died. 

I am sorry she passed away. passed away is softer and more polite.

next sentence I say: 

I like that they acknowledge death,(acknowledge means to recognize, to see and 

recognize) instead of denying it(denying is the opposite of acknowledge. denying 

means avoid it's to say no to something. to avoid something its' to denying it. to 

denying. the opposite of denying  it's acknowledge. Acknowledge and denying 

opposite.  

ok! So they don't denying death the way Americans do. I like that there is life, as 

well as death, in their cemeteries. 

Guatemalans call it “The Day of the Dead”, but it is also a day to appreciate life. 

appreciate means celebrate to understand and like something. so to appreciate ok!? 

that is all of the vocabulary. Listen to the vocabulary lesson a few times. read the 

text several times. listen the audio article a few times. And then finally listen to the 

mini-story many, many times, a lot, every day. ok.