Talking about death is probably the last big taboo we have as a culture. We can and will talk about almost anything else; sex, drugs, the weather, you name it, we talk about it. Except death.
Maybe it's fear that keeps us from talking, or politeness (in Finland they don't discuss death in the family as it is seen to intrude on the grief of the berieved).
It's strange when you compare this to other societies which have inbuilt cultural mechansims to help people deal with death, grief and mourning; the Day of the Dead in Mexico, Quingming Festival in China and Japan. Ireland even had it's own celebration in the form of All Soul's Day (or Hallowe'en before it was just about sweets and dressing up).
Though the subject matter may be considered morbid from the perspective of some other cultures, celebrants typically approach the Day of the Dead joyfully, and though it occurs at the same time as Halloween, All Saints' Day and All Souls Day, the traditional mood is much brighter with the emphasis on celebrating and honoring the lives of the deceased, and celebrating the continuation of our own lives; the belief is not that death is the end, but rather the beginning of a new stage in life.
Quingming means "Clear and Bright Festival". It is held around the spring equinox which synbolises new life. For the Chinese, it is a day to remember and honour one's ancestors at grave sites. Young and old pray before the ancestors, sweep the tombs and offer food, tea, wine, chopsticks, paper accessories, and/or libation to the ancestors.