The October issues of Real Simple magazine has a piece about a mom who
has Halloween anxiety: she wasn’t afraid of witches or goblins or other evil spirits, but she was
apparently very concerned that she wasn’t creating enough fun for her kids!
Aw, c’mon. The ancient Celts, now, had reason to be scared...they believed that on the eve of Samhain, our modern Halloween, spirits walked the earth, so they dressed in disguise to make sure any evil ones wouldn't recognize them.
Besides, dressing up, slathering oodles of your mom’s make-up on your face, and getting free bagfuls of candy is most children’s favorite fantasy! Of course, costumes have changed since I was a kid—then, you mostly scavenged around in your mom or dad’s closet for ratty stuff to borrow. When I was in 6th grade, I found an old scarf and skirt of my mom’s, and put on tons of her blue eye shadow and red lipstick, and voila, I was a gypsy! If you were really lucky, they’d get you a super-cheapo store-bought rig:
In 2nd grade, I was one of the fairies in Sleeping Beauty, wearing a silky blue garment that was so flimsy the seams ripped while you were taking it out of the package.
Besides, dressing up, slathering oodles of your mom’s make-up on your face, and getting free bagfuls of candy is most children’s favorite fantasy! Of course, costumes have changed since I was a kid—then, you mostly scavenged around in your mom or dad’s closet for ratty stuff to borrow. When I was in 6th grade, I found an old scarf and skirt of my mom’s, and put on tons of her blue eye shadow and red lipstick, and voila, I was a gypsy! If you were really lucky, they’d get you a super-cheapo store-bought rig:
In 2nd grade, I was one of the fairies in Sleeping Beauty, wearing a silky blue garment that was so flimsy the seams ripped while you were taking it out of the package.
These days, costumes are a serious business. I just got a look at the Museum Replicas Limited catalog, and there you can order all kinds of wild outfits, from Renaissance-era to Hobbit-themed to steampunk! You'll need to spend about $300 just for the basics. My 6-year-old grandson
is going to be the Incredible Hulk, with the must-have accessory, a giant pair
of padded green hands. It’ll be a challenge for him to hang on to his candy
sack, is all I can say.
In my Halloween story for kids, Morgan Carey and The Curse
of the Corpse Bride, my 10-year-old heroine gets more than she bargained for when
she dons her disguise for Halloween. To celebrate this coming Halloween and Day
of the Dead, Morgan Carey is coming out in print…and the ebook will be free on Amazon.com October 31, November 1 and November 2!
I'd love to hear about your Halloween costume...in the meantime, Happy Halloween!
No comments:
Post a Comment