Halloween: My Favorite Time of Year
Well. Home sick. Just like the good old days when I missed school as a kid, except instead of lounging on the couch in front of an old vaporizer that may or may not set the house on fire, nose slathered in Vicks vapor rub and sucking down gallons of 7 Up and Ginger Ale while I watched PBS, (that was the only channel with anything remotely fun on it during the day, out where I lived), I'm home chasing around two sick kids, keeping a balanced spreadsheet of which medicines I've administered to whom and when, as well as taking temperatures, (not mine), and covering bathroom duty.
Hm. At least there's still Vicks vapor rub.
Anyway, it'll give me a chance to rhapsodize on my favorite time of year, both because of the season itself, and the holiday. First of all, I love fall. Sure, one day may be nice, the other chilly, but I love the leaves as they turn, and honestly, Bradbury wasn't using empty imagery in describing fall. It does smell different: all crisp apple cider, dried out leaves and pumpkin spice air.
And of course...there's Halloween. Costumes. Candy. Trick or treating, and general spookiness. Some of my fondest memories revolve around Halloween, and I love that Madison - my oldest - is getting into it, also. We've even got a cool "Halloween count-down" calender, like the Christmas ones:
The pumpkins have been cut and lit, and two fresh ones will be cut for Halloween night:
(Yeah, I know. They aren't that scary. We're saving those for Halloween night).
And every single day, Madi asks if it's time to go "Trick or treating". Plus, I love Halloween movies. Not so much the blood and guts ones - like "Saw" or "Hostel" - they're not my taste, (though I make obvious exceptions for any zombie movie, Halloween, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street)...but I'm totally into the haunted houses, ghost stories, supernatural shenanigans, all that stuff. I read "Something Wicked This Way Comes" with my 9th graders ever year, ending right around Halloween...and, well...
Man. It's just Halloween. It rocks.
Now. I'm NOT going on a screed here. It's just not me, plus this blog isn't really about ranting (because again, I'm just not a "rantful" type of guy), but I am ME, which I've become more and more comfortable with over the last few years, and as the years pass, I care less and less for what folks may think of me. I try to be considerate of others' feelings - to a point - but, this is ME. You like it, cool. You don't, cool. Just don't try to change me. Ain't gonna happen.
That being said.
I'm very thankful my wife is into the whole Halloween thing. She decorates the house more than I do, honestly. And, after almost making a huge mistake and marrying the WRONG person, (that's another blog for another time), when I met Abby I already knew what I wanted and DIDN'T want in a wife. I did want a woman who shared the same values and faith as me.
I didn't want someone, however, who was fearful. Afraid. Concerned that everything "fun" without clear "spiritual" explanations or definitions in the Bible must be eliminated, because they weren't "Godly". Because of my near-marital fiasco, I may've had a marriage-checklist, per se...but I didn't want to marry someone whose approach to faith was checklist oriented, also.
I first met folks in my brief Bible-college stint who didn't celebrate Halloween. Because it was evil. Remnant of pagan festivals and rituals. Plus, you know. All those spooky, gory masks and whatnot. That and too much chocolate.
Okay. Won't argue the pagan thing. You research it, you'll certainly find it. But Christmas? Pretty sure Jesus wasn't born on December 25th. And the whole "bring a tree into your house and put lights on it, hang wreathes on your door" thing? Pretty druiditic. (Yes, I made that word up. I'm a writer. I'm allowed to). So why is Christmas okay but not Halloween?
I remember in high school, my church had their own version of a Halloween party - pretty much all the same, except everyone had to dress up as a Bible character. All things considered, that was okay. I mean, rocking with the Apostle Paul and Samson? I dig it. Plus, they never made a huge deal out of it, if I remember right. No calling Halloween that "devil evil's day" or anything. Just offered their gig as an option. I think I went as Matthew one year. Maybe John. Can't remember.
Our current church does something called "Trunk or Treat", which I think is actually pretty cool. Everyone in the church...and I think the community is invited, also...pulls their cars into the parking lot, sets up little mini-stations at their trunks and distributes candy. That's pretty cool. No restrictions on costumes, come as you are - zombie or Jesus. (or Zombie Jesus, which would be really cool). Its focus is mainly safety for young ones, and that, as a parent, I can totally dig.
This year, however...we're heading out to the streets. Trick or Treating the old fashioned way, and as soon as I can figure out how to duplicate one of my favorite bad guys of all time:
I'm dressing up with everyone else.
So. I guess that's it. A slice of me. Man of faith. Faithful Halloweener. Go figure.
Happy Halloween. God bless.