My Little Ghost of Halloween Past

I used to live in a little town in Indiana where kids went trick-or-treating all month long. From October 1st until October 31st, dozens of costumed kids were on the nightly prowl for free candy. Everybody knew about it, everyone seemed to accept the 31 Days of Halloween. We didn’t, though.

As newcomers who’d just moved into the township from upstate New York, we didn’t get it. My parents, younger sister, and I couldn’t figure it out. Halloween was when you were supposed to go trick-or-treating. October 31st was THE night, although we knew that in many communities, October 30th -- the night before Halloween -- was often allowed. Also known as Mischief Night, Devil’s Night, or Beggar’s Eve, the 30th did get slated for tricks or treats -- but mostly tricks.

Imagine our surprise when a steady stream of kids kept knocking at our door all month long for candy we hadn’t even bought yet. Needless to say, a few eggs mysteriously found their way to the side of our house. ( FYI, trying to clean raw eggs off your house is grosser than any zombie entre any day.)

As usual, when something doesn’t make sense to me, I write in order to figure it out. So I wrote a Letter to the Editor about this widespread trick-or-treating, along with a few other things about the true spirit of Halloween. Then without my parent’s knowledge or permission, I sent it to the local newspaper. The editor published it, not realizing the comments had come from a curious, forthright grade-schooler. Here is what I wrote:

Dear Editor:
    I have noticed that many children have been going around “tricking or treating” when it isn’t even Halloween yet. I don’t know if they know it or not, but you’re not supposed to go to other houses begging for candy until Halloween.
    I have lived in many places around the U.S.A. but I have never lived in a place where kids go around “trick or treating,” October 21.
    Do we give Christmas presents December 10 and celebrate all December? Some people in Europe celebrate their Christmas, December 6, (St. Nicholas Day) but here in the U.S. we celebrate and give presents on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
    After I say this, people will look down upon me as a cruel heartless person, but it’s true. “Halloween” means Holy Evening. Why? Because years ago, when many people in Europe were devout Catholics, November 1 was a holy day honoring all saints. It still is, today, a holy day of obligation for Catholics; they must go to Church on this day. “Halloween,” was a day for prayer and meditation. At this time many people were superstitious. They believed in witches, ghosts, goblins, etc. Somehow, children decided to dress up in weird costumes and scare people in giving them “tricks or treats.”
    In some parts of the U.S.A. however, Halloween Eve (Beggar’s night) is just as important as Halloween.
    Sometimes I wish we could celebrate Christmas all December, but Christ wasn’t born all December, just one day was his birthday; likewise for Halloween.

Believe it or not, my little 250-word editorial raised quite the brouhaha in West Mayberry. Other readers quickly responded to criticize me and my opinions. One lady actually denounced me as “a cruel, heartless woman” who just didn’t want to give out candy anymore. Another guy wrote that this kind of Halloween might be “all right for Catholics, but not for us Protestants.”

When word got out that a youngster still enrolled in elementary school had written the mini op-ed, more snide remarks came verbally to my parents. They heard comments about how I must have “had a little help in writing it.” Or that everyone knew they had written it and signed their child’s name to it, just so they could complain without offending the townfolk.

An old Colonial proverb advises, “Speak your mind but ride a fast horse.” My parents wouldn’t buy me a pony, so I had to endure the slings and arrows of Smalltown, USA.

One good thing did come from my letter, though. My comments did help to create a conversation about this unbridled door-to-door begging for candy. Most people didn’t like the idea of 31 days of trick-or-treating, anyway...They just didn’t want to come out and say so because freedom of speech is a real iffy commodity in little towns. Because I was new in town (AKA, an outsider), I was able to create enough awareness so that a dialogue could finally take place. People started talking, and they decided that one day of Halloween was enough for them.

So, in that little town, Halloween got back to its traditional schedule.

What amazes me now after all these years is how well I was able to organize my thoughts and articulate them into a pretty decent Letter to the Editor. What also amazes me is how much the expectations for this holiday have changed:
Halloween IS celebrated all-month long now!

Remember when stores used to put up Christmas decorations in October, before Halloween even arrived? Not so much anymore because now the spookfest is a real money-maker for them. In fact, only Christmas is more lucrative and popular. Halloween is now the #2 holiday for merchants and businesses. That’s why it’s not just on October 31st or October 30th anymore, it’s all month long.

Shopping malls, nature centers, grocery stores, other shops, even zoos all give out free candy to kids almost every day in October now. These closely supervised spookfests initially began as a way to ensure children’s safety and assuage parental fears. What started out as a way to keep kids away from predators, dangerous candy, and inclement weather, however, soon turned into a booming industry. When businesses began figuring out how much money they could make by sponsoring 31 days of Halloween, this holiday expanded big-time. Forget about tradition. As long as there’s money to be made, Halloween will last 31 days.

And because big bucks are involved, everybody’s A-Ok with the extended celebration.

Money seems to be the driving force behind anything and everything in our 21st Century socio-economic culture. As long as capitalism can thrive, anything goes.

How easy it is to reprimand a few errant trick-or-treaters on the hunt for a few more Milk Duds, but how difficult it is to say no to capitalism. Good bye, Fright Night. Hello, Fright Month.