Oceanside is getting ready for Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead.

The mood is lively.

On this day, community members gather to remember loved ones who have died.

"There is a celebrative mood, even though sadness is involved," said Carlos von Son, one of the festival's organizers.

The day is a celebration not of death or of life, but of both as a continuum of existence.

"It is about the cycle of life and death. You can't separate them," said von Son, a native of Mexico and a professor of humanities and Latin American Literature at California State University San Marcos.

To honor the dead, ofrendas (offerings) will be made throughout the day. The ofrendas are small displays, sometimes referred to as altars, that memorialize the deceased.

A typical ofrenda might contain a photograph of the loved one, samples of their favorite foods and some mementos, along with marigolds, incense and candles.

It is said that the marigolds and incense are supposed to create an odor that smells like bones.

Several Oaxacan families, students and local artists will build ofrendas for the event.

As a cultural guide, von Son will walk through the streets and help visitors understand the deeper meaning behind the day's festivities.

Von Son will also host an educational session and present a play he wrote about Day of the Dead.

In his play, "Ofrenda," von Son tells the story of a man discovering his cultural roots.

The drama focuses on a man who leaves his hometown in central Mexico to get a job in California. A Day of the Dead celebration sharply reminds the man of his lover who died and compels him to bring the bones of his loved one to his new homeland.

"This is a metaphor for bringing his culture here," von Son said.

"Some people on the other side of the border question the authenticity of our celebration, But this tradition comes from thousands of years ago and has always been changing."

Its roots go back to the Olmec, Toltec, Maya, Aztec and Christians, von Son explained.

"The tradition has been modified and enriched," he said.

The festival will feature Mexican and American food, folk art, music and crafts for children, including a workshop on making sugar skulls.

There also will be an area where participants can make ofrendas.

"The day is a fusion of emotions," von Son said. "There is sadness and nostalgia along with laughter and song."