Opinion: For many Latino families the holidays arent over until the Epiphany – The San Diego Union-Tribune

Navarro is the assistant editor for The San Diego Union-Tribune en Espaol. She lives in Tijuana.

Like many binational kids in our CaliBaja region, I grew up in Tijuana, believing in Santa Claus and singing carols in English and Spanish, eating spicy tamales and turkey with gravy. And while my White friends will usually take down their holiday decorations right after Christmas, in my house everything stays the same until Jan. 6. Im sure that Im not the only one who follows the unwritten tradition: For Mexicans, the holidays go from Dec. 12, on the Day of the Virgen de Guadalupe feast, to Jan. 6, the Epiphany a time frame that even has its own name, el maratn Guadalupe-Reyes.

We provide this platform for community commentary free of charge. Thank you to all the Union-Tribune subscribers whose support makes our journalism possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider becoming one today.

For many Latino families, on both sides of the border, the Da de Reyes on Jan. 6 is the last day of the season to celebrate and cherish the joy with your loved ones, and it is also the last chance to bring gifts to the little ones while celebrating an important date in our faith. The story in the Bible describes three wise men who visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They symbolize the first gentiles converted to Christianity. Even now, the kings are always present on my moms nativity ornaments, el nacimiento. I remember them in my grandmas decorations: Melchior, a white-skinned and golden bearded king riding a camel; Gaspar, with an Arabic look, riding a horse; and Balthazar with dark skin, riding an elephant. All three men wore fine capes and jeweled crowns. I also remember how my grandma use to play with the three figurines when I was a kid.

First, she would place them away from the nativity manger, and every day she would move them, so they could walk closer to the nativity scene. There are different traditions associated with the Three Kings Day. The first one has to do with presents. Before going to sleep, on Jan. 5, the children place one shoe near the nativity decorations or next to a window, so they can collect a gift from the wise man the following morning. Then there is food, just like in any other celebration. Before the date, and on Jan. 6, we drink hot chocolate, champurrado (a thick drink made of corn masa and Mexican chocolate, with or without milk) or coffee while eating the rosca de Reyes. The sweet bread, shaped like a wreath and decorated with nuts and fruits, represents the kings crowns and another biblical passage. Inside each rosca, the baker hides a tiny baby figure that represents the hiding of baby Jesus from King Herods troops. On larger roscas, there are several babies hidden.

Most recently, the baby has morphed into popular figures, like Grogu (aka Baby Yoda) and many other characters. Also, the extravagant and exquisite cuisine of our region innovates every year, offering a wide variety of roscas on both sides of the border. From the classic sweet bread that you can find for cheap at any Hispanic market to gourmet creations from exclusive bakeries and upscale prices stuffed with cream cheese, chocolate, cajeta (dulce de leche) or fruits. For those on a special diet, a quick search on social media can lead them to specialty places where its possible to order vegan and gluten-free choices.

Once you choose your rosca, you should know that, at least in my house, there is one rule to obtain your piece of that special cake: no one else can cut your piece of rosca, because if you touch it, the baby is yours. And of course, there is a golden rule: If your piece of bread has the baby figure, then you must serve tamales the following month, on Feb. 2. Some say that receiving the baby is a symbol of good luck, others that it is just an excuse to keep partying with your loved ones, with more champurrado and tamales. No matter on what side of the border you celebrate the Epiphany, this will be the last day of this seasons holidays. After this day, its fine to remove the Christmas decorations and start working out to lose those extra holiday pounds. Because if you eat rosca, tamales will be back next month!

More:

Opinion: For many Latino families the holidays arent over until the Epiphany - The San Diego Union-Tribune