All Hallows Eve

[Alyx in her witch's costume]

Halloween. An annual holiday celebrated on October 31st. Activities of the day include carving faces into pumpkins, donning creative and elaborate costumes, wandering from house to house in search of candy, hanging out with friends, pulling pranks, telling frightening stories, watching horror films, lighting huge bonfires….

Many Christians get the willies come the 31st. Maybe it’s because, even if it’s not known, the history of Halloween is, in fact, a horrifying story.

All Hallows Eve. An annual holiday signifying the end of the harvest, the start of winter, the season of death. It also came just before All Saints Day, the day when souls worthy of heaven would ascend... therefore All Hallows Eve was their last chance to reap revenge on those who harmed them during life. Ghoulish faces were originally carved into turnips or potatoes (us lazy Americans found pumpkins much easier to carve). Costumes were not for fun - they were to disguise yourself from the spirits haunting you. The 'trick-or-treat' tradition was, rather than children, the poor begging for bread in return for praying for the giver's dead relatives (spirits with more prayers found easier passage into heaven). 'Sacred' bonfires were lit and embers were carried in the carved vegetables to light sacred fires of their own, which, of course, scared the spirits away. 

Yeah, all that said, Halloween kinda scares me. But I still dressed up. But didn't get any pictures. I plan on wearing the costume again, though, so...