Happy Tuesday, My Friend!
You know what’s just around the corner, don’t you? No, I’m not talking about the election; it’s something else that’s happening even before that: Halloween! Now, I know that not everyone is a fan of Halloween, and I’m not here to promote or un-promote(?). It’s just a matter of making a few observations.
First of all, does anyone else remember trick-or-treating as a kid all over tarnation with no adult supervision? I mean, I feel like I went to every single house in my small hometown with just my friend and no parents for miles around us! I know it’s true that “It’s a whole different world nowadays.” I miss that world of yore.
I remember going to one house as a kid, where an elderly woman was dropping unwrapped dates into each child’s candy bag. I thought that was “yucky” and awful at the time. Now, I want to hug that elderly lady. She could have easily not opened her door and ignored us little rascals. She probably was giving us one of her favorite treats.
And then there were the college years. Dressing up was so much fun, and kids were clever with what they’d come up with. My roommate and I dressed up together several years in a row. For some reason, we always leaned toward dressing like old ladies. We thought it was hilarious. We’d go to Goodwill and get old-lady-wear, complete with hats and handbags, and then we’d meet up with friends of ours that were all cute: Wonder Woman or a sexy cat, and we’d look at our costumes and say, “Why are we doing this to ourselves?”
We’d vow that the next year, we’d be cute. I don’t think that ever happened. And now we ARE old ladies. I hate it when that happens.
Ah, and then there were the years of dressing up my kids for Halloween. I loved to make their costumes! I used a pattern now and then, but I loved whipping something up with what was in my bursting-at-the-seams fabric bin.
One year, while we lived in Minneapolis and Maria and Sean were quite small, I dressed Maria as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, and Sean was a little not-quite-two-year-old Scarecrow. I made them the cutest costumes! And then we had a record-setting blizzard that started on Halloween and continued for three more days! That wasn’t going to stop us, though, by gum. I disassembled those costumes, pinned them to the outsides of the kids’ snowsuits, and sent them out the door with their father. (Imagine hearing Elsa sing, “The cold never bothered me anyway!”)
Kevin and I have been away for a few Halloweens in a row. And the years before—the Covid years—we just set out pre-assembled little candy bags on a table at the end of our driveway. We’ll be home this year, and I’m looking forward to seeing the neighborhood kids appear at my door again. (Word on the street is that we’re back to handing out candy at the door again.) I love seeing their costumes and “oohing” and “ahhing” about how they look.
When I was with my almost-four-year-old grandson, Beck, recently, I asked him what he was going to be for Halloween. “A dinosaur!” he said excitedly. And then he asked, “What are YOU gonna be?” It gave me pause. I haven’t “been” anything for so long. He suggested I be a skeleton.
So, how about that? What are you going to be this Halloween? I’ve got that “old lady” thing down pretty well. I don’t even need to go to Goodwill to get the right costume.
I think I’ll just try to be myself and hope that’s not too scary for the kids who come to my door. Or to my husband since he’s the one who sees me the most.
May this week serve you up more treats than tricks!
Written with love – – – Patti XOXO
PS—I’ll be celebrating my little dinosaur’s 4th birthday next week, so I won’t get to write to you. I’ll be back on November 12.