Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Halloween!



Prima designed the pumpkin on the bottom- no idea where she got the idea.  Isn't she amazing?  The top one belongs to ghosty boy; he gets one every year.

I think it's rather sad that Halloween is not really celebrated in Switzerland.
Unlike the winter holidays, when people tended to retreat to their immediate or extended families, I remember Halloween being a time when everybody went out and rang doorbells, and lots of lonely people in my neighbourhood seemed to really look forward to it.  Shy people could interact and be part of the community in a non-committal, non-threatening, peripheral kind of way.  I used to wonder why the old ladies on my street seemed so thrilled when we rang the doorbell.  As a kid I couldn't see what was in it for them.  We came and took their candy away!  I remember thinking, "What crazy old ladies!  They can buy a whole bag of mini-Mars Bars, and then they give them away!  They should just not answer the door, and eat all the goodies!"  I like to think I've changed a bit...

Happy Halloween, everybody.  It's the day we all give our ghosties an extra hug.

8 comments:

fairyhedgehog said...

Happy Halloween!

I've got a sign out with a cute picture saying "Happy Halloween" but I'll be surprised if we get many takers for our sweets given the soggy wet weather we're having.

Mother (Re)produces. said...

Oh, what a shame! It shouldn't be allowed to rain on Halloween! Over here it managed to stay dry, so we've had a few, in spite of the relative unpopularity of the holiday. What tends to happen is the kids are up for free candy (what kid wouldn't be?) but they don't put a lot of effort out on costumes :\

fairyhedgehog said...

We've had a few bunches of kids come for sweets, and one anonymous lot left us an empty shaving foam can and a satsuma.

Very surreal the kids round here.

Sarah Laurenson said...

Our neighborhood is packed with Orthodox Jews who don't do Halloween. But we do get the kids from the apartment buildings nearby. With the crazy dog in residence, we can't answer the door though. Last year we taped bags of candy to the door. This year, they're going on a table by the garage where there's a light.

Love the lock and key eyes!

Sylvia said...

Halloween has just descended on our local village with a vengeance and I have to say, I don't like it. It's all orange and black decorations and cakes made of gummi-sweets and kids roaming in packs holding bags out. There isn't even a phrase for "trick or treat" that they have adopted. It just feels like a joke. I used to wish I could take my kid to California for Halloween so he could experience it the way I did - but this has nothing really in common with it.

I refused to answer my door. *grumble*

Yes, next I'll be shouting about kids on my lawn, I know...

Mother (Re)produces. said...

Sarah, Prima is glad you like her pumpkin design.

And everyone, yes. It does seem like Halloween has gotten complicated. We had a rather pleasant lot this year, but I was sad to read in the paper all the damage reports from idiots that think Halloween is a carte blanche to make whatever mischief they like. There was a certain amount of that when I was a kid too, but here certain people seem to have taken the negative aspects and run with them.

Sylvia, at least the actual trick or treaters say "Süsses oder Saueres!" To which MWB always answers, "I'll take the sweets, then!" and they stare at him.

Mother (Re)produces. said...

Love the satsuma, Prickles. We used to draw pumpkiny faces on them and hand them out!

fairyhedgehog said...

I wonder if the satsuma was left by the same kids who left a banana last year - only that time they came back for it.

I was a bit worried about the shaving foam can. It felt like escalation. Still, next year's a long way off!