Happy Halloween! I have to admit, I long for the Halloweens when my kids couldn’t drive and we got together with families, had a quick, unhealthy and spooky dinner followed by an evening of trick-or-treating. I loved it when they were old enough to go out in a pack by themselves and stop in periodically. Some of us handed out candy, the dads would drive around on the golf cart keeping tabs on the kids. Simple and fun. My heart was full.
Origin of Halloween
Now that I’m not planning my family’s Halloween outing, I’ve focused my effort today on understanding the origin of Halloween. This is a symptom of aging.
According to The World Book Encyclopedia, the origin of Halloween can be traced to an “ancient pagan festival (Samhain) celebrated by Celtic people more than 2,000 years ago where the Celts believed that the dead could walk among the living at this time. During Samhain, the living could visit with the dead.”
Costumes, Candy, Tricks and Treats
The book Halloween—An American Holiday, An American History, says Celts wore ghoulish costumes so that wandering spirits would mistake them for one of their own and leave them alone. Others offered sweets to the spirits to appease them. In medieval Europe, the Catholic clergy adopted local pagan customs and had their adherents go from house to house wearing costumes and requesting small gifts.
Pumpkin Carving
In medieval Britain, “supplicants moved from door to door asking for food in return for a prayer for the dead,” and they would carry “hollowed-out turnip lanterns, whose candle connoted a soul trapped in purgatory.” (Halloween—From Pagan Ritual to Party Night) Others say that the lanterns were used to ward off evil spirits. During the 1800’s in North America, pumpkins replaced turnips because they were plentiful as well as easy to hollow out and carve.
History Lesson is Over… Enjoy!
We still love and celebrate Halloween. The candy is ready, decorations are up and we’re looking forward to seeing all of our trick-or-treaters. Hopefully no tricksters! As far as our girls go, they seem to select more stylish “costumes” than they used to…
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Volunteering at Your Child’s High School: The Highs and Lows
