Richard Rodriguez has his reasons to celebrate Día de los Muertos.

In the last few years, he’s lost best friends, colleagues — and his father Lawrence Rodriguez, known as “Dr. Mariachi” for his dual practice of chiropractic medicine and the stringed vihuela .

“A lot of cancer,” he remarked on his losses.

He found a way to manage the grief.

“This is the way,” he said Saturday as he overlooked the ofrenda altars in the Plaza, adorned with marigolds, framed pictures of those lost, and candles, all while mariachis played a few paces away.

Rodriguez said he’ll have an ofrenda at home for his dad with blue corn enchiladas and a margarita — an offering of favorite foods is the customary way to invite lost loved ones to return.

“ This means a lot,” he said. “Remember your people. They’

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