Halloween isn’t what it used to be. If it weren’t for the candy aisle at the grocery store and the costume stores that pop up overnight, I am not sure I’d notice the holiday at all.
It’s a holiday for little kids and once they grow up, it’s just hard as a parent to get enthusiastic about it. That probably explains why the house lights in my neighborhood are mostly dark on Halloween each year.
I knew it was fading from importance as we put out less and less decorations each year. We started many years ago with a house full of orange and black knick knacks and spooky silhouettes in the window. Now I dust off the fake front porch pumpkin and I’m done!
Halloween is this country’s second most popular holiday but has become a complicated one for parents. In “the old days” we ran home from school, grabbed a costume and something quick to eat before heading out for the night – literally.
As soon as the sun dipped, we were off knocking on doors and might cover a few miles before the 10 p.m. curfew. The only time we checked in was to drop off full bags of candy.
Today’s Halloween is no longer carefree. Parents just can’t let their kids roam outside of the neighborhood and they are suspicious of any candy that comes from strangers.
Maybe it’s time for a moratorium on Halloween but that sounds like an adult talking. Kids would not share that opinion.
Halloween has always been a weird but wonderful holiday for them. They get to beg from strangers, eat gross amounts of candy and stay out late. Halloween also differs from other holidays because it often falls on a school day. Is there a longer school day for kids or teachers than October 31st?
Our only advantage in Catholic school was that November 1st was All Saints Day – a school holiday that conveniently followed Halloween. Of course the two days are linked in history.
The holiday’s origins actually go back 2,000 years to Celtic harvest festivals and superstitions. They celebrated Samhain (sow-in) on the night of October 31 when ghosts of the dead were believed to return to earth causing trouble. Romans added their own twist to the holiday and Christians established a holy day called All Saints Day or All-Hallows Day on November 1. All-Hallows Eve gradually became Halloween according to legend.
We never dwelled on the historical significance of Halloween. We were too busy choosing a costume that would show our own individuality without exposing us to ridicule by older neighborhood kids.
The big kids were the scary part of Halloween in the city. They wore little or no costume, roamed in packs and hustled smaller kids for candy. Occasionally they would leap from behind trees and throw rotten crab apples or eggs at the weak ones.
As a ten year-old, being bullied by fourteen year-olds was bad but being seen with your parents on Halloween was worse.
Halloween was a giant but spooky step into the adult world where the rewards were sweet and the dangers could be – a little messy.
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