| All Hallow's Eve |
3 November 2003
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Halloween, A Dying Custom
In the American kids' calendar of holidays, Christmas is the big one. The free loot makes it a favorite by miles, but Halloween comes second, again with free goodies. Unfortunately for the little ones, Halloween is a dying custom.
The trick side of "trick or treat" one can do without. Why throwing eggs at a house or covering it in toilet paper is amusing to some is beyond reckoning. Those who enjoy that most also are apt to engage in other petty crime throughout the year.
However, even the better parts of the holiday are dying off. Children still put get their costumes and carve jack-o-lanterns, but the neighborhood alight with the festival of All Hallow's Eve is not there as strongly as it once was. It used to be a carnival of mild fright, and that is missing in many places.
Of course, the modern celebration of Halloween was mainly an invention of the 20th century, and should it pass will only be a footnote in American cultural history, rather like the non-events of Flag Day and Groundhog Day. Yet, most complain that children spend too much time in front of the TV or in internet chat rooms or playing video games. They long for a more "wholesome time." Yet, when push comes to shove, it takes too much effort. And that's why so many houses on Friday night were dark -- not because they were haunted.
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