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 For a very long time it has been traditional on the ancient pagan holiday (holy day), "All Hallows Eve", known here in North America as Halloween, that children wear costumes of any kind - they don't have to be scary ones - and go door to door saying "Trick or Treat". The adults then give them a "treat" so that the children won't play a "trick" on them! A deal made for the sake of fun.
Over the years, this tradition has been altered quite a bit. Ill-minded people gave dangerous treats that hurt children and parents had to examine every treat before letting their child eat any. All the young children now have an adult escort them, to guide them on the busy streets and protect them from danger. This person is usually a parent or older sibling who waits some feet away while the child goes to the door. The distance is there to help maintain at least an illusion of independence for the child, since it is supposed to be their special night. Because of these problems, much fewer children go out on Halloween than did in the past, so schools and parents hold Halloween parties for the kids to enjoy this day. They get to dress up and have treats, but in a safe and supervised environment, and all before nightfall. No, it's nothing like when I was a kid.
When I was a child, our family lived in the country. There were only about eight or nine of us kids in the area and only six houses that we could go to on Halloween. Everyone knew each of us so it was especially difficult for us to not be recognized, which of course was a major part of the fun of dressing up. So we would go, all together, to the same houses three or four times, having swapped our costumes after each visit to maintain our anonymity. The adults knew of course, but would pretend not to and would give us more treats each time and feign surprise when we revealed who we were.
Today, kids are given chocolate bars, potato chips and other junk food. Our treats were very different from today's and especially so because we lived in a rural area. We were given fruit, nuts, chewing gum, little homemade cupcakes and pies, candied apples on a stick (apples dipped in hot caramel toffee and cooled until hard) and bags of marshmallows for toasting on the bonfire that one of our neighbours would light after our 'trick or treating' was done. The children and adults would then have a party around the bonfire, with hotdogs and cups of hot chocolate to keep out the end of October chill. Since it was in the countryside, we could watch shooting stars and, occasionally, the aurora borealis (the Northern Lights), a dancing ribbon of many colours in the northern skies - very beautiful and always magical. Our parents would light "sparklers" for us from the bonfire and we would dance in a circle, laughing and singing, holding them up high so the little sparks would fly behind us as we ran. Then, our bonfire host for that year would complete the evening's celebration by setting off fireworks.
At home it would be a quick bath before bed. Being the baby of the family, mine was in the big metal wash tub placed in the middle of our big farmhouse kitchen floor. Our flannel pajamas, straight from atop the pot-bellied stove, were wonderfully cozy, though never seemed to be the right size. Once in bed, we were allowed to tally the evening's spoils by spreading them over our blankets and marvelling over our favorites. The pillowcases we had used to collect our treats with would then be refilled with our pillows and our treats put away to be given back one at a time over the course of the following week or two. After prayers and goodnight kisses, we went to sleep, happily exhausted from our long and exciting evening of dress up in the fresh October air. We slept soundly, dreaming of toffee apples, witches' brooms and cowboy hats, laughing pumpkin lanterns, big warm cups of frothy chocolate and tiny sparks of fire flying to the stars.
Pat
Little Hunny Plumpkin
sat beside a pumpkin
scaring all the kiddies come to see.
"I'll give you a treat" she purred
but nobody heard
as they all ran away in glee.
"Mommy! Daddy!" they did cry
"You must come an' look!
The kittycat
has a broom and hat!
An' is reading from a book!"
"A spell…" she purred
"for to find
a way to change this pumpkin
into something
not as cute and round
as Little Hunny Plumpkin!"
by
Hunny Plumpkin, fp (feline poetess)
When I was young, we had a cat who only answered to Kitty (we said she
named herself). She was an amazing cat and I could tell so many
heartwarming stories about her ... anyway ....
She was a very patient and wise thing and had always let me dress her up
when I was just a wee one. When I was about 11 or 12 (making her about 12
or 13) it had been some years since I'd dressed her in doll clothes. It was
Halloween and she insisted on parking herself on the table at the front
door - the one with the bowl of goodies on it! We had tried to get her to
go somewhere else but she was determined to greet all the children and get
in all their petting. So my sister hit on the idea of putting a witches hat
on her and went about making one from paper. We didn't really think she'd
stand for it but to our amazement she wore the hat, never losing it,
despite it just being perched upon her head. I swear she was enjoying it.
Next I got out a Barbie cape and broom from a Cinderella outfit and she
wore the cape without complaint, nor did it ever slip from her shoulders!
We didn't know what to do with the miniture broom so we just laid it
against the bowl and Kitty put a paw upon it immediately and held it like
that for the next hour or two as the kids came in and tentatively took a
handful of candy from the bowl. Their eyes were like saucers and never left
our lovely calico! They streamed in, in single file, silent and utterly
agog at the sight of Kitty, guardian witch cat of the treat bowl!
I remember one little "faerie princess", holding her wand as Kitty held her
broom, being the only one to become loudly excited. She squealed with
delight and ran out into the driveway to grab her Dad and drag him inside
"to see" the "kitty witch with the broom an' hat!"
Kitty cast her own spell that night. And I don't think that little girl
ever forgot Kitty!!
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