Spooky Season

While I find it so important to focus on the current events in terms of our government at the moment, I also believe it is important to talk about those things that we are looking forward to. I am a huge Halloween fan, growing up I learned that I loved to scare people and to be scared. This was mostly in part to the fact that my Dad's birthday fell on Halloween, so while many people went out trick-or-treating, as I did, I also had something else to look forward to, our annual Halloween party.

Now you might be thinking, everyone has Halloween parties, and many people love Halloween. But Halloween for my family was like Christmas, except even better in some ways. We collected more and more decorations over the years, turning our house into a shrine for all things spooky, creepy, and . We practically always had something new to show off each year.

There were few things I looked forward to as a kid more than that Halloween party, and the feeling of it all. Now, as I still love Halloween, I figured it was time I do a little research about our favorite holiday, which is also known by All Hallow's Eve. This may be common knowledge to most of my spook-loving readers, but I hope I can bring some things to light that have been hidden in the dark for far too long.

Halloween, believe it or not, originated in Britain and Ireland. Halloween was technically the end of a year in ancient times, as the new year began on November 1st. It was seen as the day where souls of the dead would come back, similar to the Day of the Dead, or Día de Los Muertos, in Mexico. It was also said that the souls who had died just that year would leave to go to the otherworld.

The idea of wearing a costume during Halloween came from the practice of trying to scare away evil spirits, demons, and ghosts, that would roam the Earth on this day. This was a Celtic festival known as Samhain. They also would light big bonfires as another tactic to scare off spirits. As All Hallow's Eve was seen as the first day of winter, which was associated with cold and death at the time, it's easy to see why it became the spooky holiday it now is.

In the time of All Hallow's Eve, many believed that it was a time when predictions for the future were at their strongest. The Celtic people would sacrifice crops and animals to appease the gods, as they themselves wore costumes made from the skin and heads of animals.

Similarly, the Romans had a holiday that was also centered around the dead. When they conquered the Celtic people around 43 A.D., these two holidays intertwined to become one. The Romans festivities included worshipping a goddess that presided over fruit and trees, which may be why we see apple picking and bobbing as a fall activity today.

Halloween itself became more and more spooky oriented over the years, as more and more individuals became interested in scary movies, haunted houses, Halloween events, and even corn mazes. I for one love all of these things, not to mention the candy. Halloween may be very different than the way it originated, but that doesn't make it any less fun!

While this year may seem at a loss, there are many things you can do to still celebrate Halloween without going out. Stay tuned for an article where I'll be talking about all the things you can do to still have a good (and safe) Halloween despite the pandemic!

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