Nayely Rodriguez 1

Nayely Rodriguez
English 114B
Lynnette Morinini
2 May 2014
Dia de Los Reyes/ Day of the Holy Kings
There are many traditions indeed, all ranging from person to person, family to family,
and culture to culture. A tradition my family has kept partially alive is Dia de Los Reyes/ Day of
the Holy Kings on January seventh.
Dia de los Reyes/ Day of the Holy Kings is a Mexican tradition in which children put
their shoes outside and get in return toys. But before night falls we eat round bread called a rosca
with sugar on top and inside of that bread are at least three dolls. Whoever gets one of the three
dolls has to get together with the other people who got the doll as well and make a special dinner
sometime in the month of February. You can do this with your own family or celebrate it with
other families beside your own as well.
This tradition was brought to us because my parents introduced us to it. Dia de los Reyes/
Day of the Holy Kings was their form of Christmas in Mexico. Since they did not celebrate
Christmas the way we do now in the United States. My parents now have assimilated to the nw
customs of Americ and celebrate Christmas on December 25
th
. Yet they do not let tradition of the
rosca (bread) die out. January 7
th
may not be their Christmas date anymore as it was in Mexico
but they still keep it alive by buying this special bread and join with friends and family. Those
special dolls inside the rosca (bread) represent baby Jesus Christ. Dia de los Reyes/ Day of the
Holy Kings is called that because, seven kings traveled to see baby Jesus. Mary gave birth to
Jesus in an animal barn alongside with her husband to help her. The miracle about this birth is
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that Mary became pregnant miraculously. Mary and her husband did not have any sex and she
was unable to become pregnant. Many would laugh and say it was not his baby but he ignored
them. Later because of all the problems arising and rumors being spread about them they decided
to move to the city of Jerusalem. Word began to spread about the miracle baby being born
already, so these seven kings set out on horse to be present during the birth of baby Jesus. With
them they carried many toys for this baby if it was to result true that this woman was pregnant.
As I told you the history of this story, it is related to Catholic religion. In Mexico there
are many big Catholic believers and celebrate many religious events along the calendar. Dia de
los Reyes/ Day of the Holy Kings is one just one of them but the most significant that is still
present in my family back from Mexico, their homeland. It is the most mentioned among the
neighbors in my neighborhood.
To me Dia de los Reyes/ Day of the Holy Kings is meaningful to me because it is mixed
in my tradition as a Mexican-American individual. I am proud to know about the traditions that
make us who we are. It takes us back to our roots and introduces us to a beautiful culture to
embrace and love. In my future family I plan to keep the Mexican and American cultures alive
because I am a mix of both and I would love them to know about their grandparents roots. Where
it all began.