I just read a post over at Being Savvy titled It’s Halloween tomorrow! Or, Tired of Halloween Yet? and it got me to thinking: isn’t it sad that many of us are Halloweened-out, and it’s not even Halloween yet? (Don’t even get me started on Christmas — I’m already seeing fake trees dotting local stores. Prepare for the holiday deluge on November 1.)
We just got a note from my son’s school informing us that Halloween costumes aren’t allowed at school tomorrow. They listed a number of reasons, many of which seemed ridiculously politically correct in nature, and my first response was “Oh, c’mon. It’s Halloween. What’s the big deal?” But then I started appreciating the unintended consequence of the school dress policy: my son’s costume will be all the more special when he dons it for trick-or-treating tomorrow night. The anticipation around here is delicious. No before-Halloween parties to attend, no school costume parades, no family photo opps. Just getting dressed up tomorrow, relishing the reflection in the mirror, posing for some snapshots, then heading out into the night. Beautiful. Simple.
When Halloween turns into a week-long extravaganza, October 31 loses a bit of its luster. Consider pulling it back into a single, magical evening and see how it feels.
