Halloween

Posted by Katrien Vander Straeten Oct 6, 2006

Fall is here in Brookline, MA. The sky is cloud-laden, the sun bursts through once in a while, illuminating all the goreous colors in the trees. Even when you close your eyes you just know it's Fall: the leaves whisper underfoot, and the chill gets to your bones...

Well, I love Fall. I like the festivals it brings too. I'm ambivalent about Halloween: I like the fun aspect, especially for the kids, but not so much the cheap commercialism that surrounds it. I also like All Hallows' and All Souls': in Belgium we used to visit our family graves on All Souls', and I remember it as a cosy, a bit melancholy day of family. In Europe I was never aware of th Mexican Day of the Dead, but here in Boston it will be quite visible, and I love the sugarcandy skulls. And doing research on the Celtic feast of Samhain was an experience!

So far I have three articles up on Halloween and related Fall festivals:

Halloween Comes to Europe, which is mainly on the commercial aspect of the holiday there.

European Alternatives to Halloween, which discusses other occasions for trick-or-treating (mostly treating, though),and dress-up parties: Saint Nicholas, the Feast of Saint Martin, Carnival...

The Fall Festival of Death, a mediation on why all these festivals, the theme of which is death, occur at the end of October and the beginning of November.

More articles are bound to follow soon. Fall is full of goodies for a Customs and Holidays writer... O, but wait until WINTER!