Happy Halloween. When I was a child I did enjoy getting all that candy and that was about the extent of it. We made our own costumes, usually hobo's or pirates, and went out to collect the bounty. I do have a memory of making a ghost to hang in the tree in my front yard. I lived on a dirt road and seldom did anyone besides those of us living there come up that road. As a result our holiday decorations were always minimal. Outdoor ones that is. I guess my parents figured why bother. Oh we did have Christmas lights, that was the big deal, although as kids we heard complaints about the electric bill. Thing is, those old lights did draw a lot more power than all these tiny LED light displays we have today. I expect you could see a difference in the bill. As for Halloween, I never saw anyone with lights for that, I wonder when that began? That, and all the inflatable things. I have seen some very large ones around.
In years past, when my own children were young, I would have some decorations for Halloween. I lived on main street then. Even then, it wasn't like a big thing, not like Christmas decorating. As far as I know my kids don't do a whole lot either, a tradition continues. I haven't handed out candy in a number of years either. I just don't feel like sitting outside in the cold and handing out little pieces of candy. Yes, the little kids are cute and I do enjoy them, but it doesn't seem to have the same excitement as in years past. Another part of it is the candy itself. You would have to spend a good amount of money to hand out the candy that I received as a kid. For that reason I feel cheap about handing out what I can reasonably afford these days. I mean, I used to get full sized candy bars, and bags filled with candy. You remember those little individual bags stuffed with a variety of candies. The last time I handed out candy I had made over two hundred of those little bags and ran out!
The church up the street from me is hosting trunk or treat. It is a safe alternative for the kids. I think it is a wonderful idea and certainly a sign of the times. It is no longer safe for little kids to go door to door and run about in the dark. My parents would take us, up town, to go trick or treating. The houses there were all in a row, on roads with a sidewalk, and we could clean up block by block. Seemed like every house had the porch light on. If you ride around Greensboro on Halloween night you won't see many lights on! It's a little sad, but a reality.
Yes there was a day when it was all about candy, then it was all about an excuse to dress up and drink. Following that I would enjoy the time with my kids, seeing them excited about it all. With the grands the wife took to baking up a storm of treats for them to take to their school parties. Cupcakes and cookies in all the ghoulish flavors and designs. We would walk with them as they went door to door. Good memories of days gone by. I think they will remember Halloween much the same way as I do, and that's a good thing. You know as a kid I never did know what we were "celebrating" when it came to Halloween. Thing is, it didn't make any difference. I never cared why, just that I could. Dress up and get candy for no reason at all. Sounded like a great idea to me. A holiday without a cause. No pilgrims, no founding fathers, no God, no memorials for those that were killed, none of that. Just, kids get candy. Yup, I never questioned that growing up. Sounded right to me.
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