Halloween!

If you think about it, it is a very unique holiday/occasion. Who's idea was it to create halloween and scare the pants off people? Well after doing some research there doesn't seem to be a definite answer to that. One theory that I came across was that it was thought to have originated with the Celtic Festival of Samhain, when people lit bonfires and wore costumes to ward off roaming ghosts. The word Halloween was first used in the 16th century and represents a scottish variant of All-Hallows-Evening, that is the night before All Hallows Day. The carving of jack-o'-lanterns springs from the souling custom of carving turnips into lanterns as a way of remembering the souls held in purgatory. America adopted this custom in 1837, but used pumpkins instead of turnips because they were larger and readily available.

What does the term trick or treat even mean? Wikipedia says - Trick-or-treating is a customary celebration for children on Halloween. Children go in costume from house to house, asking for treats such as candy or sometimes money, with the question, "Trick or treat?" The word "trick" refers to a (mostly idle) "threat" to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given. In some parts of Scotland children still go guising. In this custom the child performs some sort of trick, i.e. sings a song or tells a ghost story, to earn their treats.

It is interesting to see how the occasion differs for each age group. When one is just a baby, moms dress them in the  most adorable costumes they can find (which a 5 year old would surely object to). Then some kids look forward to Halloween all year so that they can get bags of treats. Some adolescents and teenagers try to trick - or - treat like they are 10 and some think they are too old. Then college students and young adults use this occasion (like any other) to go out and drink, dance and party. Some girls use it as an excuse to dress in scandalous costumes (which I will never understand why- I mean you only get one day to be a doctor or an astronaut or luigi, why waste it dressing scandalously?).

As a kid, I never went trick-or-treating for the candy, I just liked to dress up. I used to throw/give away most of the candy I collected. All of my favorite candies are from Europe and include: Maltesers, Cadbury anything, Kinder eggs, Topic bars, Lindt truffles, and Toblerone bars - I know I sound like a snob, but my mom is from England so that is what I grew up on. And Halloween is never complete without watching Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin :)

"One need not be a chamber to be haunted; One need not be a house; The brain has corridors surpassing - Material place."
~ Emily Dickinson


"Once in a young lifetime one should be allowed to have as much sweetness as one can possibly want and hold."
~Judith Olney


"There are three things I have learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics and the Great Pumpkin."
~Linus Van Pelt (Charlie Brown)


"Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain."
~J. K. Rowling


What happens when someone is scared half to death twice?