Why Halloween?
I love Halloween. It is my favorite holiday. It has been for as long as I can possibly remember. I have to stop and ask myself- Why Halloween? For many people Christmas and Thanksgiving rank near the top, along with birthdays and the 4th of July or some other warm welcoming holiday. For me, Halloween reminds me of so many things, people and good times.
As a kid, Halloween was the pivotal time of year when creativity and novice was key. We didn't have a lot of money, so it was up to us to come up with our costumes for the school parade. Remember the parades? At Vineyard Elementary it meant all of the students walked in a big circle in front of their peers. This was awesome, although also a bit stressful if you didn't have that awesome Princess gown like so-and-so. And so we were rock stars and hobos, and anything else that you could put together on a dime. We strutted our stuff wearing charcoal on our faces instead of 5 dollar tiaras and real eyeliner.
It is this kind of memory that only a few people I know can imagine. The vast majority of these "few" are my own brothers and sisters. No one could make a hobo look more hobo-ish than my dad. Every year this story comes up between my brother and I, and it is a memory that bonds us and makes us laugh. This is a memory of Halloween.
Halloween also falls at that time of year when the air gets crisp and chilly. It means I don't have to slink into a bikini for at least another 7 or 8 months. That, in itself, is pretty priceless. I love the colors of fall, in all their shades of oranges and reds. I love watching kids and dogs play in snow and rain. When I was a kid I used to beg my parents to let me walk home from school in the rain- and they always let me. I loved splashing along and smelling the earth freshen up with those first October rains.
Halloween is that spooky time. It is when you cuddle up with someone you are majorly crushing on and dig your face into his sleeve when the scary parts come on. It is flickering candles, ghost stories around the fire and sitting under heavy blankets.
Halloween is when pumpkins come out to show how hard they have worked all year to get big and strong for us all. They are round and gorgeous, and with them you can make yummy foods like pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin ravioli and.... the list goes on and on.
Carving pumpkins around Halloween reminds me just how American I am. In all my worldly travels, I have never met another people that relish their pumpkin carving and take their costuming so seriously. This is my patriotic month.
![]()
I love Halloween and seeing babies dressed in clever costumes (have you seen the Tootsie Roll costume yet??? Too cute for words....) babies that transform into lions, Star Wars characters, sheep, and bumblebees. I mean, there should be a license for being that adorable.
Then there are the adult costumes. That for which I spend way too much money each year. So many to choose from and the question always begs: Who will I be this year?
To have this one day to morph into your alter ego, your superhero or your arch-nemesis. The evening to remind the world: "I still got it going on", which is likely where I lie in the grand spectrum of costume wearing opportunity. As my European husband observes- American woman will use any opportunity to dress inappropriately, and sadly, I have to agree. Aside from agreeing, I give in. Not that he seems to mind.
I will flaunt the legs my mama gave me and I will wear my make-up just so. Maybe I do it because in some sad way I need the attention, or maybe, just maybe, I do it as a way to show that I am wearing real eyeliner, not charcoal. I am making up for the over-priced and over-stocked costumes that we didn't purchase in my youth. I am giddy in this character on this day. I pass out candy to the neighborhood children and think about the pillowcases stuffed with our confections after a hard night's walk on the Halloweens of my youth. Those pillowcases that got so heavy, but we carried on. Not because we needed all that sugary heaven, but because we knew this night wouldn't come again for another 365 days.
As a kid, Halloween was the pivotal time of year when creativity and novice was key. We didn't have a lot of money, so it was up to us to come up with our costumes for the school parade. Remember the parades? At Vineyard Elementary it meant all of the students walked in a big circle in front of their peers. This was awesome, although also a bit stressful if you didn't have that awesome Princess gown like so-and-so. And so we were rock stars and hobos, and anything else that you could put together on a dime. We strutted our stuff wearing charcoal on our faces instead of 5 dollar tiaras and real eyeliner.
It is this kind of memory that only a few people I know can imagine. The vast majority of these "few" are my own brothers and sisters. No one could make a hobo look more hobo-ish than my dad. Every year this story comes up between my brother and I, and it is a memory that bonds us and makes us laugh. This is a memory of Halloween.
Halloween also falls at that time of year when the air gets crisp and chilly. It means I don't have to slink into a bikini for at least another 7 or 8 months. That, in itself, is pretty priceless. I love the colors of fall, in all their shades of oranges and reds. I love watching kids and dogs play in snow and rain. When I was a kid I used to beg my parents to let me walk home from school in the rain- and they always let me. I loved splashing along and smelling the earth freshen up with those first October rains.
Halloween is that spooky time. It is when you cuddle up with someone you are majorly crushing on and dig your face into his sleeve when the scary parts come on. It is flickering candles, ghost stories around the fire and sitting under heavy blankets.
Halloween is when pumpkins come out to show how hard they have worked all year to get big and strong for us all. They are round and gorgeous, and with them you can make yummy foods like pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin ravioli and.... the list goes on and on.
Carving pumpkins around Halloween reminds me just how American I am. In all my worldly travels, I have never met another people that relish their pumpkin carving and take their costuming so seriously. This is my patriotic month.
I love Halloween and seeing babies dressed in clever costumes (have you seen the Tootsie Roll costume yet??? Too cute for words....) babies that transform into lions, Star Wars characters, sheep, and bumblebees. I mean, there should be a license for being that adorable. Then there are the adult costumes. That for which I spend way too much money each year. So many to choose from and the question always begs: Who will I be this year?
To have this one day to morph into your alter ego, your superhero or your arch-nemesis. The evening to remind the world: "I still got it going on", which is likely where I lie in the grand spectrum of costume wearing opportunity. As my European husband observes- American woman will use any opportunity to dress inappropriately, and sadly, I have to agree. Aside from agreeing, I give in. Not that he seems to mind.
I will flaunt the legs my mama gave me and I will wear my make-up just so. Maybe I do it because in some sad way I need the attention, or maybe, just maybe, I do it as a way to show that I am wearing real eyeliner, not charcoal. I am making up for the over-priced and over-stocked costumes that we didn't purchase in my youth. I am giddy in this character on this day. I pass out candy to the neighborhood children and think about the pillowcases stuffed with our confections after a hard night's walk on the Halloweens of my youth. Those pillowcases that got so heavy, but we carried on. Not because we needed all that sugary heaven, but because we knew this night wouldn't come again for another 365 days.
Comments