I Don’t Like Halloween

 Please don’t hate me, but I don’t like Halloween. I never did. I don’t like to be scared. I don’t enjoy masks and costumes. And I really don’t like clowns!

I love Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter. But Halloween is different. It is intended to frighten.

When I was little, my mom made all of my costumes.

The first one was when I was twenty-six months old. My grandfather had just passed away, so she and my grandmother pinned a sheet around my neck. I think I look frightened in the photo.

One of my favorites was Little Bo Peep. I adored that one. It was pretty, and I got to carry my stuffed lamb. The “staff” was made from my great-grandfather’s cane, wrapped in crepe paper.

Another year, Mom took an old wine velvet dress of hers and made it into a princess costume. My dad painted a pair of my shoes in gold and made me a crown. I rather liked it.

When I got to grammar school, Mom made us several different simple costumes. One I remember was a graduate. She used a cotton blouse for a robe and made a “mortarboard” from cardboard and crepe paper.

I often forget how creative Mom was.

We always had a carnival at school, and they were fun. They weren’t meant to be scary. They featured games and contests. I remember the dunking machine. The older boys all wanted to sit on the seat so other boys (nearly all of those who tried to dunk them were also boys) could throw a baseball at a lever. If they hit it hard enough, the person on the seat would fall off into a tank of water.

A teacher or other staff member would take a turn during the day. Whoever the “mystery guest” was that year was the favorite target. I especially remember when the principal took a turn. He was a real surprise since he always seemed very formal and proper.

When Kim was little, I made her costumes as well.

The Halloween she was one, I made her an angel outfit. Her friend, Matt, who was a month younger, was dressed as a devil. He carried a pitchfork. Kim carried her halo, which she refused to wear.

A couple of years later, she was a bride. Once again, I fashioned her costume—this time from a set of curtains.

Next, she was a witch. (The hat and wig reappeared several more times in later years.)

When the TV show Isis was popular, Kim and her best friend, Cheryl wanted to be the superhero. So, Cheryl’s mom and I made the girls these outfits.

Later on, she and her work team were dalmatians. They wore hooded white one-piece pajamas, painted with black spots. These were really cute.

Okay, so I enjoy the cute and pretty costumes. I just don’t appreciate the scary ones.

Oh, and I do miss seeing the kids in their costumes. Most parents don’t let their little ones go from door to door anymore. Churches now have trunk-or-treat events. And many malls have trick-or-treating. I can totally understand parents’ reluctance to have their children visit neighbors, who may well be strangers. We have very few kids in our neighborhood. But I miss seeing the little ones.

Once Halloween is over, I look forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’ll start playing holiday music next week!