Halloween
I remember making costumes with my mom when we were small and my father painting faces on us. We would walk to the other end of town where my grandmother lived and trick-or-treat in the stores and bar along the way then we'd visit the people on grandma's street. I remember that everywhere we went everyone knew who everyone else was no matter how good the costumes and even in the bar people were smiling and kind to all the kids. I don't remember anyone being harsh or the use of swearwords.
I remember growing old enough to help make the decorations, eventually taking over and turning our home into a fun house that put most peoples Christmas decorations to shame, and doing the same to my workplace when they would let me.
There was the first Halloween for my son, when I made him a spider and I was a black widow. Then as he grew older he lost interest in making costumes with me, more into the ones my mother insisted on buying for him because "that's the way it's done nowadays". Then came my job at Spirit, and his interest in how to make costumes flared again. He wanted to know the history of the holiday and the parallels in other cultures. He wanted to know how to make fake blood and how to use stage make-up to get the best effects.
I also remember everyone important to me who has passed from this life, human and animal. I remember to give thanks to them for the lessons learned and the love given. I remember to take a moment to explain the importance of our past to my son and how to honor our dead.
My favorite thing about Halloween is it's spirit. The spirit of giving, remembering, community, protection, and more that I don't have the ability to put into words.
I remember growing old enough to help make the decorations, eventually taking over and turning our home into a fun house that put most peoples Christmas decorations to shame, and doing the same to my workplace when they would let me.
There was the first Halloween for my son, when I made him a spider and I was a black widow. Then as he grew older he lost interest in making costumes with me, more into the ones my mother insisted on buying for him because "that's the way it's done nowadays". Then came my job at Spirit, and his interest in how to make costumes flared again. He wanted to know the history of the holiday and the parallels in other cultures. He wanted to know how to make fake blood and how to use stage make-up to get the best effects.
I also remember everyone important to me who has passed from this life, human and animal. I remember to give thanks to them for the lessons learned and the love given. I remember to take a moment to explain the importance of our past to my son and how to honor our dead.
My favorite thing about Halloween is it's spirit. The spirit of giving, remembering, community, protection, and more that I don't have the ability to put into words.