Halloween: Anything Goes
Sunday, October 24th, 2010 Some of us really love Halloween. Some take a complete pass. Whether or not you like to engage in the festivities, the holiday definitely has a few things to recommend it. To take part, there is no need to travel far away. No need to deal with the extended family. No need to be “yourself” or even some near-version of yourself. No religious observances or rituals or “shoulds” that you have to attend to or figure out how to avoid.
It’s kind-of a festival, its roots in a Celtic celebration of the impending end of the “lighter half” of the year. Over the centuries, it has accumulated all kinds of dissociated elements ― including carved pumpkins, ghostly spirits, costumes, trick-or-treat, parading, watching the parade ― that give it a weird combination of exuberance, irreverence, and irrelevance. Those who look forward to it, think, “Cool. It’s kind of silly. Kind of childish. But why not have some fun with it!” Those who could easily get along without it think, “It’s contrived. It’s a kids-only deal. It’s a pain. Lousy candy. Toilet paper on telephone poles. Maybe I’ll just stay in. Turn off the lights. When the doorbell rings, I won’t answer.”
Even with all that, Halloween is a special time of year. In the deep fall, when the action of business or school or politics has heated up and the temperature has cooled down, Halloween asks us to remember what life was like when we were little and got excited about an event that seemed full of possibility, with a tinge of danger. Who knows what might happen? Halloween ― so unlike the approaching Thanksgiving holiday, with its sense of family and celebrating traditional values ― is all about fantasy, exploration, pushing the edge, doing whatever we want to do. So dive in, dabble, or don’t. Halloween says OK, go ahead, whatever ― give yourself free rein, before the Big Holidays ask a whole lot more of you.
© 2010 John Sharp, M.D. | All Rights Reserved | Home | Profile | Blog | Contact | Links | The Emotional Calendar | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | YouTube | Login
It’s kind-of a festival, its roots in a Celtic celebration of the impending end of the “lighter half” of the year. Over the centuries, it has accumulated all kinds of dissociated elements ― including carved pumpkins, ghostly spirits, costumes, trick-or-treat, parading, watching the parade ― that give it a weird combination of exuberance, irreverence, and irrelevance. Those who look forward to it, think, “Cool. It’s kind of silly. Kind of childish. But why not have some fun with it!” Those who could easily get along without it think, “It’s contrived. It’s a kids-only deal. It’s a pain. Lousy candy. Toilet paper on telephone poles. Maybe I’ll just stay in. Turn off the lights. When the doorbell rings, I won’t answer.”
Even with all that, Halloween is a special time of year. In the deep fall, when the action of business or school or politics has heated up and the temperature has cooled down, Halloween asks us to remember what life was like when we were little and got excited about an event that seemed full of possibility, with a tinge of danger. Who knows what might happen? Halloween ― so unlike the approaching Thanksgiving holiday, with its sense of family and celebrating traditional values ― is all about fantasy, exploration, pushing the edge, doing whatever we want to do. So dive in, dabble, or don’t. Halloween says OK, go ahead, whatever ― give yourself free rein, before the Big Holidays ask a whole lot more of you.
© 2010 John Sharp, M.D. | All Rights Reserved | Home | Profile | Blog | Contact | Links | The Emotional Calendar | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | YouTube | Login
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