Holidays and Traditions

For me, and my family, the holiday season is filled with rich, inviting, exciting, and fun family traditions. Some we have enjoyed since the beginning of our lives and enjoy those memories, some we've made as we've started our own family, some we've yet to make. Family traditions make the holidays special for me, they truly MAKE the holidays....holidays.



However, if Halloween were to magically disappear from the minds of the human race, I would rejoice. I wouldn't miss this non-holiday or shed even a single tear. In full disclosure, I absolutely despise Halloween. The only aspect of the day that I enjoy is dressing my little family in cute outfits and visiting family to see their cute outfits.




There are other traditions that we participate in that I don't mind, but I could also argue they aren't exclusively "Halloween traditions," but could be considered general fall activities: Carving pumpkins, making roasted pumpkin seeds, playing in the leaves, going to pumpkin patches, enjoying sweaters and boots, drinking apple cider, etc. I adore autumn activities and traditions. Halloween? Ick. I'm a very impressionable person. So is my son. When we see images, videos, objects, or hear scary stories, it affects us both immediately (we scream) and indefinitely (we have nightmares for nights and nights).



When I was around 9 or 10, my sister and I were babysitting one night. Since Dad and Mom were gone, we took full advantage of the freedom and turned on The Shining. I still have nightmares and hate to be scared. To go a step further, movies like Disney's Haunted Mansion, the Bourne movies, The Forgotten, and Skyfall all gave me nightmares....wake up in a cold sweat nightmares. Through Genetrix, Andy is similar. So, when he comes home from school after hearing scary stories, friends talking about skeletons, ghosts, monsters, frankenstein, witches putting curses on people, and zombies, and sees skeletons all over Walmart, neighbor's lawns, etc., he has nightmares for weeks. Six months ago, our new neighbor kids told Andy Bigfoot was real and liked to hide in his closet. He still gets terrified and has nightmares about bigfoot. Hate scary, hate Halloween.....Endure it for my kids. The entire day is centered around, what I feel is, dark, sinister, morbid, and evil traditions..scary stories, horror films, zombies, skeletons, monsters, witches, ghosts, death, haunted houses, and darkness. Granted, in other's perspectives, it is all done in fun and lightness. To each their own. I just don't like the day, the decor, or focus as currently celebrated. Halloween's origin, All Saint's Day, All Soul's Day, and All Hallow's Eve, were more what we associate with Memorial Day... days to remember those loved ones who'd passed (loosely interpreted...wiki Halloween). Whatever the origin, whatever the traditions for others, whatever this weird day has evolved into, I am glad this non-holiday has past! Let the REAL holidays and holiday traditions begin!
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