The Ghost of Halloween Past
As October 31st approaches just around the corner, I remember Halloween days of what seems long ago. The celebratory ghost of Halloween lingers in my thoughts…memories of our sons choosing costumes for school and trick or-treating, visiting the in-laws to see what my mother-in- law would dress up in and the passing out of a few candy bars to neighbor children before we left out into the night.
There was the cowboy costume that Dylan proudly wore two years in a row. The black hat, shiny cap gun and pleather holster and a handy bandanna from my drawer. Then the year Branden wore a hot pumpkin jumper and sweat beaded on his face and he ended up crying from being overtired. I didn’t post the picture of him crying out of respect but it’s comical now looking back.
One year Dylan wanted to be a Blue Power Ranger and coincidentally his cousin Spencer was one too but with a red suit. Oh I can’t forget the simple ghost costume Branden wore and the eyes kept moving off his face…
Since we live in a small community we would trick or treat by car. Tom and I would chauffeur them to a few neighbors’ houses to be greeted with smiles and candy, for that’s what neighbors do. Afterwards we trekked over a couple of miles to our in-laws to hang out for a few hours.
My mother-in- law is known for dressing up in costumes over the years and the tradition continued with her grandchildren. Every year she wore something different to amuse the kids, but we were enjoying it too. One year Theo dressed as a clown and we got this great picture of her and Dylan.
Out of all these fleeting memories filled with the boys laughter and costume fun, the best thing was that they transformed into something magical for one night a year. It wasn’t always about the candy but they loved that too, because I didn’t buy candy all the time. It sure was a treat. I grew up with my dad owning grocery stores and candy and soda were easy to acquire, therefore I didn’t want our boys to get addicted to it like I did.
There’s the Halloween when the boys were 6 and 8, great ages to explore new costumes, ones that kind of reflected their personalities. Dylan chose a hunter costume, probably in tribute to his dad who is an avid hunter. Branden wanted to be a scarecrow, perhaps out of like for the infamous scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz or out of a fondness for the floppy nature of one.
A scarecrow hanging out on the wall, ready to spook visitors.
Flipping through these past memories, I remember being caught up in the hustle of buying or planning costumes and being stressed about the holiday. Even so, I truly enjoyed these moments and love looking back at photos I took. I had many people tell me to capture those moments with a camera because otherwise much would be forgotten. With a grateful heart I share these with you for some smiles and perhaps they will trigger fond moments of long ago for you.
As I plunge back into the present, I’ll tell you that Halloween is quiet now. We haven’t had a trick or treaters for five years, yet I still purchase a small bag of candy with slight hope. This may sound sad to you, but it really isn’t to me. There’s a time and season for everything and this is the season that we are in. In the present Tom and I will keep our light on, just in case and maybe watch a movie or play Scrabble Halloween night. Looking into the future hopefully we will enjoy our trick or treating grandchildren and everything will come full circle.
As I conclude this post I wish you will enjoy neighbor romping children and indulge in a little treat or two. If your holiday is rather quiet too, try to be thankful and remember what was while looking forward to what may be.
Happy Halloween to you all. Blessings to you.
All My Best,
Heart and Soul