Halloween 2007

I've always loved Halloween, in some ways much more than other holidays. While I say this with no sacrilege intended, I've always been hard-pressed to explain why I feel that way.

This morning on NPR, I heard a piece about Halloween music. The following quote was part of this story, and I have to say it pretty much sums up how I feel about Halloween in general:

"In the days before Christmas, music is there for the big stuff — there's love and joy, but also stress and melancholy, even disappointment.

Halloween, on the other hand, is a holiday of low stakes and small rituals. These days, I mostly spend Halloween night lugging my kids around the neighborhood and then eating their candy after they go to bed. That's it.

Halloween is lighthearted escapism, a celebration of make-believe conflict — fears so unrealistic that it's safe to mock them. And in that way, the songs of Halloween show why it's the happiest holiday of all."

Thanks, NPR. Well said, as always.

Happy Halloween.