Happy Halloween?

[berelinde]

Why do people say that, anyway? Many traditions set aside the 31st of October as a day for remembering the dead.

 

What's your take on Halloween? Do you celebrate? How?

[jastey]

Well, we successfully adopted the american way, children dressing as vampire/witch/sceleton and going from door to door asking for sweets. My son did it first time this year, and I had a careful look at the sweets he brought - I am so suspicious. I found one chocolate bar where someone already took a bite. Yikes, from now on I'll have to think carefully how I can avoid this.. maybe bribe him with own sweets or something like that.

 

but we do not wish us happy Halloween, yet. It is Reformation Day, anyway, so a rather important day for the protestant church.

[Eleima]

Why do people say that, anyway? Many traditions set aside the 31st of October as a day for remembering the dead.

Actually, the French remember the dead on November 1st, and it's usually a cold, gray and dreary day (and observed) during which you usually go from one cemetery to the next in order to visit each and every tomb in which your ancestors are buried. You usually put flowers in front of said tomb/shrine/grave, mutter a prayer and then it's off to the cemetery in the next town. Because, of course, they couldn't all just be buried in the same one, even though they all lived out their lives in the same little hamlet.

Thankfully, my parents being expatriates, we were never around for said holiday, and all I'm going on is tales of woe and despair from my cousins. Apparently, standing in the cold rain in a cemetery is not a fun way to spend a holiday when you're kid!

 

What's your take on Halloween? Do you celebrate? How?

I still treasure Halloween and the fond childhood memories I have of it. Carving pumpkins, getting all dressed up, trick or treating, watching Halloween movies... Sadly, Halloween isn't much out here in the Old World, so I guess I'll just watch Hocus Pocus tonight, and cuddle up with my black kitty!! Fun times!!

[magrat]

'All Hallow's Eve' is a pagan-y thing, if I'm thinking straight this late. And the 'Halloween' comes from that.

 

Our first trick or treating this year. Me, I've never done it before (we lived very, very rurally) and until earlier this year we lived in a city flat (apartment) that wasn't very family friendly.

 

Our son is almost 6, and we met with two of his friends from neighbouring houses and went around the other neighbours who live in our 'street'. The six of us are all different to the other houses as we're tenants rather than owners, so we have a very nice communual bond. Our son enjoyed it a lot, though he'll only get his sweets over time as there's far too much for a little boy to eat too quickly!

 

Other than that, we carved a pumpkin and waved goodbye to our Polish neighbours after taking some photos as they set off to do their own customary things I presume. (or as they left to trick or treat in the city with their family, maybe)

[grogerson]

I guess I'm a spoiler for most. With the world in the state it's in, and the loss of Judeo-Christian values in my own country, I don't need a day to celebrate dark and dreadful. Just look at the news...

 

I'll follow jastey on this. Martin Luther posting his 97 theses, and the beginning of the Reformation, that I'll celebrate.

[Gabrielle]

Samhain is the proper name. It is one of the four greater Sabbats (religious holidays) for those of us who are Wiccans.

[BigRob]

'All Hallow's Eve' is a pagan-y thing, if I'm thinking straight this late. And the 'Halloween' comes from that.

 

If I remember right, "All Hallow's Eve" is a reference to Nov. 1 being All Saints/All Hallows day, and that Halloween was the least holy night of the year, lying the furthest away from the last All Hallows day. Or maybe the link to the pagan Samhain was what made it a night for the dead and evil things (despite it being a harvest festival), I'm not entirely up on it.

 

Edit: Yeah, what Gabrielle said.

 

 

The celebration of it is fairly limited in Australia, and I never did it as a kid (though we sometimes watched horror movies) though increasingly kids are dressing up and going out to get lollies in the US manner. There's also a bunch of Halloween themed parties, but that us Ozzies, any excuse for a party.

[Domi]

Never really had Halloween as I grew up. The closest holiday was November 7th, the anniversary of the Great October Revolution. In the junior school that involved some sort of stage up about Soviet republics. The only memory I have of it really, is that one year me and a partner (the worst student in the class who was told to share a desk with me 'be lead by example') of mine had to represent Kirgizia. Which was not as lucrative as, say, Ukraine.... I even remember the poem that we finally found in some anthology... "Kirgizia, my people sing thee praise..." it was a very good poem, you could substitute any republic's name there in the first line, it worked just great.

 

As for here, well, I am totally on the wagon that it's fun for kids. My hubby had concerns that Kira won't be able to trick or treat (inagine, holding a bag and saying things...), but our 2 yo social butterfly got a hang of it right away, absolutely loved the mall, dragged her daddy around at lightening speed, adored the candy she was getting, and the costumes. She even gave out some of her candy to other kids whose costumes I presume floored her or something... My friends's 3 y.o. whom we teemed up with wasn't that excited about it though, he was in it for the candy, lol! And that left plenty of time to give out candy, but this year by some reason we didn't have much treak and treaters, usually we get tons. I guess, I will be bringing a lot of candy to work.

[theacefes]

I got to work but everyone brought treats and the store was dead. Afterwards I went home and went online.