Halloween Thoughts

Halloween is quickly approaching and I am full of childlike anticipation. Halloween has always been my favorite holiday, even though I am not a real fan of candy, and don’t get presents, or romantic dinners, or drink green beer. What I like about Halloween is the feel of it. I feel oddly at home during Halloween. The change of season that it brings, the drama of the masquerade, and the electric sensation of a veil lifting between this world and another. Whether real or imagined, the mysterious and magical elements enliven my spirit.

Halloween elicits many different emotions in people. Some love having the parties, dressing up the kids, going door-to-door and chatting with neighbors they may not have spoken with since the Labor Day picnic. It is an ushering in of school and sweaters and a slowing down of the hectic summer months. Routine life begins again around Halloween and I think that is comforting to many.

Others, mostly the college crowd, have adopted Halloween as their own Mardi Gras. It is an excuse to really let down their hair, allow their alter egos to burst forth, and generally make even bigger asses of themselves than on a usual Saturday night.

Then there is the religious aspect of Halloween. For Pagans and Wiccans is it the Shabbat of Samhain, a festival with different meanings, depending on your particular religion. Christians are the most interesting I think. You have the die-hards who refuse to even acknowledge the day, the more moderate ones who embrace only the whimsical side (lets put a witch hat on the kitty!) and then there are some who are drawn to and fascinated by what All Hallows Eve represents, yet are at war within over how this relates to their faith. I have seen this push-pull myself and have seen them almost live out the holiday vicariously thru me, keeping themselves at a safe distance.

And of course, there are the children. Halloween has changed so much since I was a child. My father would come get me well after dark (the ONLY time to really get the Halloween spirit) and take me to all the neighborhood houses, telling me scary stories or pointing out imaginary ghosts behind every corner. I was exhilarated and scared at the same time. My Dad really put the magic in Halloween for me. I also remember a few times my teen-aged aunt took me around, cutting thru backyards that were pitch black, running and laughing in fear and delight like the devil himself was at our heels. Then we would come back to my grandmother’s house and, after passing the genuine cast iron cauldron being stirred by her dress mannequin decorated as the scariest witch I have ever seen to this day, we would pour out the bounty to assess the loot. My sister and I engaged in a very serious bartering session (she liked sugar, I liked chocolate) in the candle-lit kitchen with scary stories playing on the radio. It was a magical time.

Today, kids don’t have it so good. Parents feel the world is too dangerous now for the trick-or-treating we did as kids, so they dress up their kids and have them all congregate at someone’s house which, to me, is no better than a dress-up birthday party. Sorry Moms.

Things are kind of tight this year for us, so tight that we are skipping Halloween and will miss the few trick-or-treaters that come to our door. The radio no longer plays spooky shows all night, and the TV seems to think that blood and gore equates to spooky. I don’t know what ever happened to my grandmother’s horrifying porch witch, and my aunt has passed away. So this year you can find me playing my own movies on DVD, candles all around, eating candy corn in my witch outfit. I don’t think the magic will ever die for me.

As a thank you for reading this highly indulgent post, here is a cool recipe for Halloween, but not for the faint of heart: Simply click on the title of this post found above the haunted house picture.