Halloween began as Celtic holiday to celebrate the end of the harvest season. October 31 was set as time to to ward off the evil spirits. Halloween is also the eve of All Saints' Day on November 1. In the Philippines people visit the graves of their ancestors for the holiday and celebrate with feasts and parties to pay respect to the spirits of the departed. Historians disagree as to if the holiday stems from Pagan cultures or if it is an actual Christian celebration. Trick or Treating has a history that dates back to the 17th centruyScottland where people would dress in costume and go house ot house singing and asking for food.
Growing up in rural north Georgia in the 1950s gave little opportunity for Trick or Treating, but there was an annual Halloween festival at the local elememtary school which was the center of social activities for the little Vanna community. Baked good were for sale. A hot dog supper was avaialale for a fee. There was a house of horrors providing adequate entertainment for the students and people of the community. There was music and other entertainment. Proceeds from the event were used to fund projects for the Parent Teacher Association.
On one particular Halloween when i was about 9 years old, a group of older boys in the community came to our house Trick or Treating. They were the only trick or treaters I encountered up until that time. They asked if I wanted to go with them as they continued their Halloween fun. My mom agreed. Taking an old sheet she cut holes for my eyes so I could dress as a ghost, and i was off for a night of adventure. I only remenber a couple of houses that we visited. At one place an elderly couple came to the door and had no clue what we were doing. One of the boys explained the Trick or Treat process to them. They gave us an onion because they had no candy or teats to give out. At another house, no one was home. They had left the kitchen window open. At my suggestion, we took handfulls of sand and dirt and threw it through the open window. It was the home of my mother's cousin. Years later, I confessed my transgression to the homeowner. We all had a good laugh about it. He owned the local Ford dealership and he was helping me to buy my first car at the time of my confession.
In 1958 we moved from Vanna community to the nearby town of Royston. We were in an apartment complex so for the following years Halloween presented us with more than enough trick or treaters to make up for my earlier years.
When our sons were children I took the trick or treating every year, usually with one or more of their friends going along for the fun. On one particular year when oldest son was past the acceptable age, my wife took our other son and his girl cousin trick or treating. I stayed home to give out treats. Just for the fun of it, I dressed in a dark robe with a hood that covered most of my face as well as my head.. I sat on a dimly lit porch with my bowl of candy treats. I was a bit disappointed that very few kids would even come near me because my costume and the erie music playing had scared them away. Even our niece was skeptical of coming on to the porch.
During recent years a custom developed with my son's former inlaws. We visit them each halloween for a chili dinner and take all the grandkids trick or treating. Now most of that generation has outgrown the custom as well.
A few years ago a family freind was invited to attend a Halloween party at a local private club. He made a big deal out of the fact that he was going. Since we had very few friends in common, I was not invited, which was fine with me. At the last minute I dressed as the grim reaper with a costume that totally covered my face.. Yes, I crashed that party and had a great time. I met lots of folks but never opened my mouth to say anything to anyone. My total silence drove them absolutely crazy. While I could see fine through the covering on my face, I had failed to realize that I would not be able to eat or drink. That did present a bit of a problem when I was offered drinks.
To avoid embarassment to innocent people, I will forego telling more of my Halloween escapades including last year when my wife helped a close family (male) freind dress as a Japanese giesha girl for an event he was to attend. His dress now serves as the cover on the seat of an antique chair that I restored.
We are three days away from Halloween 2013. As of now, we have no speical plans beyond visiting with friends for the annual chili dinner. But I have three more days, and I'm relatively sure that some opportunity will present itself before then.
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