Think of the "Five and Dime" stores of yesteryear when parent's flocked to "buy" their child the newest and latest superhero or cartoon character costume of that year, that era. Not my family. I was born in 1955 when it was not even a thought that we "buy" anything we could make ourselves -- whether our own version of pizza, clothing, extensions to houses or decorative moldings on every door from kitchen cabinet to closet door. Using what we HAD "in the house" was my inspiration. That was the only option.
So, when Halloween would come around I would get really excited, filled with wonder and imagination as to what was going to be my new "try on" persona and character that year. In school I was deeply disappointed to see friends of mine hidden behind plastic masks of Snow White with holes for eyes, while other friends not even bothering to partake in the festivities, maybe no one at home to encourage. I felt sad.
Halloween is, of course, "All Hallows Day" where the veil between life and death is the thinnest. What potential to take death on in a safe way, a child's way. As a child I was deeply afraid of cemeteries, the dark and anything that had a spook to it, any fear factor. No, no. Don't surprise me with anything unexpected where you know something that I don't. SCARE--EE!
Now, as a Special Education teacher, mother of three amazingly creative humans, and a Lifestyle Educational Consultant and Anusara yogi, what matters most to me is how can we infuse a sense of "owning our life" inside the experience of this "Fantasy Formal'? I query the path, the evolution, of a child who wishes to express themselves from the inside out. Since Halloween does give us the opportunity to experiment with whatever our own fantasy of our demeanor is in "that" moment it is never really about what anyone else thinks of our chosen
"costume" for this day, or any other day, for that matter. The main thread of consciousness -- even on Halloween -- is really what the costumed child feeling about being the character, personality, or attitude they chose -- and I mean how do they feel about "their" choice? And how can we, as parents, help them saturate themselves in their own truth of expression of their own inexplicable evolving self? Halloween opens doors of socially acceptable potentials.
