Halloween

It is no secret that we Americans go about things with gusto.  Funny enough, I've had plenty of conversations with people, American and otherwise, who see this as both a strength and a weakness, and when it comes to Halloween, I'm inclined to agree.  I love watching Autumn roll in and breaking out the sweaters and boots and watching steam rise out of thermoses as whistles blow at football games, but I feel a bit conflicted about Halloween.  I love the idea that, for one night a year, we give our children permission to mingle with neighbors, many of whom we will only ever see or talk to on October 31st.  I love the eager giggles at classroom parties, and the opportunity for creativity conceiving of costumes gives the kids. What I'm not so crazy about is the fact that usually, by the time porch lights go off on Halloween night, parents and kids are beyond exhausted and ready to tear the hair out of each others coordinating wigs. (Or so it usually goes at our house.)

That's why I was relieved by our first Halloween in the Netherlands.  Any guesses how many costumes were to be found in the stores? Exactly 2. And they are both related to Christmas.  As for trick-or-treaters, we had a grand total of zero, unless you count our kids.  Or my husband. Twice.  Walking through our village, Halloween looked exactly like any other autumn day.  There were pumpkins at the store.  Last month. They sold all 15 of them and now I can find them at an apple orchard or a restaurant supply store.  My youngest and I went to the orchard and bought the two largest they had.  They were pie pumpkins, and when the family sat down to carve them the night before Halloween the walls were so dense we could barely get a hand into the tall one to clear the seeds out. The four-year-old had to do that on his own. And guess what.  We loved it!

We sat down on Halloween and watched Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin without interruption, then celebrated with trick-or-treating on Saturday with some friends who live in the "American neighborhood." And this was no ordinary trick-or-treating, people.  About 15 houses volunteer to host, a limited number of tickets are sold, and the proceeds from the tickets pay for decorations and candy so that each house is decked out with fog machines or lights or haunted houses.  Each group is given a map of participating houses and sent off in different directions. It was a great time to be with friends, wear costumes and enjoy a Halloween on which no one had to stay home to answer the door.  And as for class parties, a committee of parents put together lovely after-school parties for the children, so instead of 5 parents from each class pouring their evenings over Pinterest trying to come up with clever games and snacks and crafts, a team of parents from across the school did it for two groups (big kids and little kids) and everyone had a great time. Best of all is the fact that, for the first time in several years, I have survived Halloween with enough remaining energy to revel in preparations for Thanksgiving.