I love Halloween-Samhain

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To Pagans, Samhain is a very important holiday.

It is the last of the three great harvest festivals many of us celebrate. Now is the time of turning in. We gather the harvest and evaluate our gains. We decide what will tide us over the winter, and what must be saved as seed for the coming spring.

It is the turning of the year - and the Witch's New Year. Now is the time when the darkness is greater than the light. When most of us will turn from outward focused tasks such as planting and harvesting (gardens, yes, but also jobs, learning, raising children) to inward focused tasks such as study of our craft, meditation, teaching, and spiritual growth.

Many cultures and religions agree that at this time of year the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead are thin. In the old Christian traditions (and some current ones as well) this is a frightening prospect, as they believe that only the evil will pass through to this earth - since the good are all sitting beside God in heaven, I guess. But to Pagans, and any tradition that reveres and honors their ancestors, this is a time to look forward to. A time when we can remember, honor, and even visit with those who have passed to another plane of existance. Many of us decorate altars with offerings to those who have passed before us. Their favorite foods and drinks, and little remembrances of them such as photos.

It is a time for divination. For asking the ancestors and the spirit world to share their wisdom with us and to guide us in making decisions that will serve our highest good and greatest growth. Whether you read the tarot or tea leaves, now is a good time for a reading. Ask for guidance and advice from your ancestors and the spirit world, and they will share it with love.

And last, but hardly least, many Pagans still live in places where our religion is actively persecuted. Many of them are "closeted" - pretending to be something they are not. Then along comes the Halloween party and it is okay to dress as a Witch! To many, it is more like coming out than hiding behind a mask!

A couple of years ago I was visiting Truth or Consequences, New Mexico on Halloween. Hubby and I were treating ourselves to a visit to one of their world famous healing hot springs spas.

After dark, spooks and monsters began appearing on the streets! It is a local custom for everyone who dresses up for Halloween to stroll up and down Broadway after dark. Many of the little local businesses open or stay open and offer treats. Even the local volunteer fire department turns out their parade truck and hands out candy to the kids.

It was one of the reasons we decided to stay here - two years ago! Yep - look for me on Broadway this Halloween - I'll be the Dark Fairy!

Sure, everyone has a Jack-o-Lantern - but do you know why?

Well, the traditional story goes - there once was a man named Jack, who was a terrible prankster. He played pranks constantly, and on anyone at all. When Jack died, neither God nor the Devil would allow him into Heaven or Hell for fear of his constant pranks. So Jack was sentenced to walk the earth for eternity. You could see him walking about at night - carrying his lantern. Thus he became known as Jack - O - Lantern.

At first, because Europe - where the tale originated - did not have pumpkins - Jack carried a lantern made out of a hollowed out turnip with a candle inside. When Europeans came to the New World, they discovered pumpkins. Much better! Bigger - easier to carve and get a candle into! And makes better pie, too.

I think I am sentimental about this story because when my father-in-law, a real prankster himself, and an all around character, passed on a few years ago. As the family gathered around we began joking about how Dad was probably watching, because neither God nor the Devil would have him. We had visions of him bouncing back and forth, and being turned back at both gates. Later, I learned the story about the Jack-O-Lantern, and now it always reminds me of Dad.

So, I am especially fond of Jack-O-Lanterns. I've made Jack-O-Lantern clip art, Jack-O-Lantern coloring pages, and even Jack-O-Lantern greeting cards at Zazzle

The Danse Macabre was a medival allegory that was created at the time of the Great Plague. Fully one third of the worlds population died as the Black Plague swept across Europe. How frantic young people must have lived, knowing that at any moment blushing youth could wither and die. The picture of a vibrant young maiden dancing with death, usually a jaunty skeleton with top hat and tails came to symbolize this to many.

Today, we are doing our own Danse Macabre. A plague is sweeping the world, leaving behind thousands of orphans in less developed countries, while the most privileged nation lags behind helping in the name of lining the pockets of big, rich pharmacuetical companies at the cost of lives of the poor. Our governments make war at the drop of a hat, sending our young to die in the name of - whatever excuse they are using that week. "Terrorist" has become the new "witch hunt". We have handed over our rights as citizens as the government brandishes the fear of terrorists so that now any person, any time, any where, can be branded a "terrorist", then defamed, robbed, tortured, and killed without recourse. Our nations rush to suck the Earth dry of her resources, fighting over the last drops of oil, turning a blind eye to the obvious changes in our world wide weather so we can go on with our greedy consuming.

Truly, we are doing our own Danse Macabre. We rush blindly on, grabbing up "all the toys", hoping to build a wall of enough possessions, enough prestige, enough mind numbing drugs, movies, games to give us a sense of security while the world falls down around us. We are that youthful maiden, dancing in the arms of death.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead

I believe that prayer and meditation influence the Universe. This Halloween, pause for a moment in your rush to get all the candy. Light a candle, say a prayer, meditate just a moment. Visualize a world of love instead of hate, of hope instead of fear, where people come together to help one another, where we live WITH the Earth, not just ON the Earth. Maybe you can resolve to make one small change in your own lifestyle that will make a positive contribution to the world. Step back from the dance, look Death in the eye - see that bony old skeleton for what he is, and slap him in the face for daring to trifle with you!

The image is original artwork by Summer Fey Foovay

I love costumes. I love playing dress up. Kids often use costumes to express their fantasy, or what they want to be when they grow up. I think grown-ups use costumes to express who they wish they could be, or to express their own fantastic wild side. Pagans aren't the only ones who have to hide parts of themselves from the outside world. Many of us have mundane daily jobs that require us to dress a certain way, wear our hair just so, limit our jewelry to only conservative pieces. Often, the life we've chosen limits our behavior, too. Not necessarily a bad thing. Yet who knows but you if behind your librarian scholarly exterior there lurks a wild gypsy, a Harley rider, or a sexy mermaid? No wonder adults leap at the chance to choose and wear a costume! It's like a brief vacation from your everyday life, isn't it?

These are so quick and easy to make - as well as delicious and fun to eat!

1 bag of Keeblers Fudge Stripes
1 bag of Hershey's Kisses (any variety)
1 tube of Orange cake icing (the easy to use type with tip built in is perfect)

Take one cookie - make a ring of the icing around the hole on the chocolate side. Stick an unwrapped Hershey's kiss over the hole. That's it! Repeat until you are out of something or have eaten all the kisses...

Happy Samhain Greeting Card
by

foovay

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