Happy Halloween

By Ronnie

The word, "Halloween", actually has it's origins in the Catholic Church. It comes from the term of, All Hallows Eve, which is November 1st, ("All Saints Day"), a Catholic day of observance in honor of saints.

It is believed that on that day, the spirits of those who had died throughout the year would come back in search of living bodies to possess, being their only hope for the afterlife. So on the night of October 31st, villagers would dress-up in all manner of ghoulish costumes and loudly parade throughout the neighborhood, being as destructive as possible, in order to frighten away spirits looking for bodies to possess. They went from door to door collecting food for the dead very successfully, as everyone knew if they refused to give, it was a sacrilege. If treats were not given, terrible tricks were done.


I have so many fond Halloween memories of all the fun, costumes, activities, and of course, the goodies. Those were the days when we got popcorn balls from the lady on the corner, caramel apples from the lady two doors down, and then there was the lady that always gave out a nickel. My brother and I always tried to make two trips to her door, but she kept remembering us. When we got home after all the trick or treating, my mother always had a big pitcher of hot apple cider waiting for us to drink while we dumped our goodies on the table and made piles of the things we liked best. Then the trading would begin. Every year, my daddy would tell us how awful chocolate was for us and he'd volunteer to eat it so we wouldn't get sick. He was so funny with that serious look on his face.

And this, My Dear Owl Friends, is one of my favorite, but shortened, trips down Memory Lane, and I would love to hear some of your stories.

BOO,
Ronnie