The veil between the living and the dead is thin during these days of mid-autumn. In past centuries, November 1 was better known as All Hallows or Hallowmas (Hence yesterday being All Hallows Eve or Halloween, in northern Christian countries.). Now called All Saints Day, today is a solemn feast to acknowledge all saints, known and unknown and those who are martyrs (or more specifically, those who have entered heaven).

For me, as I walk through the forest near my home almost daily, I feel the profound changes of the season. The feeling of death pervades my path. The loss of light prompts me to acknowledge today the martyr Santa Lucia (pictured on my altar), patroness of light, to light my way through the autumn and winter seasons.

As many Sicilians do, I embrace these cycles of life with the assistance of the saints.