BOO!

Hallowe'en hasn't always been the candy-begging holiday it now is. Once upon a time, before Christianity was widespread, agricultural societies celebrated the last harvest of the year at this time. The celebration (in the British Isles) was called "samhain" (pronounced "sow-en"), a Celtic word meaning "the last harvest." This big party was in part to give thanks to the gods and goddesses of harvest, but also an affirmation of life. Winter was coming, and if the harvest was poor, many would not survive it. [Note: this is vast oversimplification, see my links for more information.]

Those farming folks also believed that the "veil" that existed between the living and the dead was thinnest on this day, and ghosts could want among the people once more. It was considered courteous to set a place at the dinner table for any departed family members.

The name "Hallowe'en" comes from All Hallow's Evening, the day before All Saints Day. When the Christian church had trouble converting the Pagans to their way of thinking, they moved All Saints Day (a day of honoring the dead) to coincide with the Pagan Samhain (also a day for honoring the dead). It was in this fashion the Pagans started mixing the two holidays, and within probably only a few generations of "pretending" to believe the church teachings, the people DID begin believing the teachings, and a set of cultural beliefs was largely wiped out.

Many of the common symbols of today come from this time in history, and misconceptions about the Pagan roots of this holiday. The ghost, as mentioned above, is the walking spirit that has passed through the veil for the night. Witches are the wise ones of the village. She was probably a midwife and a healer, she may have read tea leaves, but she didn't make cows go dry. The black cat comes to us from the witch trials, when cats were believed to be the souls of witches wandering out of their bodies to spy on people, or the witch's familiar (who was also a spy). With witches and cats, you get the broom. The idea of a witch flying is just silly. It is possible that village elders used hallucinogenic herbs and roots much the way American Indian shamans use peyote today, but no one ever got on a broom and flew. The besom is actually a witch's tool, symbollically cleaning and purifying her home. The cauldron was also a tool. It cooked the various remedies a wise woman (or man) would have used for healing. It also cooked supper. Owls are night birds, and also sacred to the Greek goddess Athene, which may be where we get that image. Pumpkins and Jack O'Lanterns come from the Irish folktale about a wicked man named Jack who made a pact with the devil. He ended up having to walk the earth for Eternity with a glowing coal in a carved-out turnip for a lantern. When the Irish came to America, they found a fruit that was easier to carve, plentiful, and much larger than their turnips: pumpkins! So, the modern jack o'lantern was born. Devils are a common sight on Hallowe'en, because witches are supposedly in league with them.

The resurgent popularity of the holiday Hallowe'en during the Victorian era is rather amusing. Along with the séances that were popular and other forms of divination and "spiritualism," it was belived that if a girl looked in a mirror on midnight October 31st, she would see reflected there the image of her husband to be. The postcard at right says: "Don't be afraid on Hallowe'en / If you take a lighted candle and a mirror clean / At the stroke of twelve, look in and there's seen / The face of your lover that I ween [imagine]."

There were other ways a girl could divine her intended's identity: if she peeled an apple in one long strip, and threw the peel over her shoulder, the fallen peel would form the letters of her husband's initials. Or, she could sleep with the peel under her pillow that night and dream of him. This romantic period of history had a lot of girls very curious about who they would marry. They gladly risked missing sleep, slicing a finger, and staining pillow cases, all for love! (Tongue planted firmly in cheek...)

The Victorian society, for all its apparent stiffness, was a lively and rich period of history (if you were comfortable, financially). Interest in the occult flourished in this time, and many charlatans took money from credulous people who wanted to know what the future held. Palm reading, dream interpretation (largely due to Freud and Jung), tea leaf reading, and even "Ouija" boards were common at parties as parlour games. And why not? America and England were prosperous places. England, in fact, was at its height of power, and the "sun never set on the English Empire" due to Victoria's colonization. The Western world was a pretty good place to be in the early 1900s.

Yes, I know, it wasn't all wine and roses. But what period of history is? Turn-of-the-century sensibilities gave us Dana Gibson's beautiful drawings of the ideal in feminine beauty (and it was not Barbie). Winsch Publishing gave us gloriously rendered postcards for any and every occassion imaginable.

85th Birthday Raggedy Ann: Halloween. From Dakin, 2000.
(Another Ann wearing a witch
costume was made in 2003.)

Because Paganism has gotten so popular at the end of the 20th century, the "original" purpose of Samhain is again being celebrated. Calling it "the old ways" is a bit of a misnomer, however. No one really knows how agricultural people celebrated this holiday, because there isn't any record of it. We have ideas and interpretations, which may or may not be correct. It's more in the spirit of Samhain, however, than modern Hallowe'en is.

In the 1970s, rumors flew about tainted candy. This is largely urban legend; the only documented case I know of was actually tainted candy a father gave his children (after he'd taken out large insurance policies on them -- disgusting). However, the threat does exist, and the best rule of thumb is one most parents already teach their kids: Don't take candy from strangers!

Hallowe'en is behind only Christmas in commercialization. A great deal of money is spent every year decorating the home for Hallowe'en. I suppose it's only a matter of time before neighborhoods have Hallowe'en display contests like they do for Christmas light displays. (If you know of a neighborhood that does this for Hallowe'en, please email me, I'd love to know about it!)

Haunted houses are not just for the Jaycees, anymore. You can find any number of shops that will sell you props and books about haunting your house. Hundreds of sources online will help you devise more and more diabolical scenes to terrorize your neighborhood. See my links below for some of those sources I've found.

One of the things I particularly enjoy about Hallowe'en is the music. Creepy music, funny music, whatever... With the help of MP3.com, my CDs, my husband's CDs, and my daughter's CDs, I actually made myself a soundtrack. "Looking for Dracula" is a Charlotte Diamond kids' song, along the same lines as "We're going on a bear hunt." There's swing, jazz, classical, rock and roll, folk, goth, techno, and trance in there. (I have eclectic taste.) Here's my "soundtrack" for Hallowe'en:

Toccata and Fugue, Tis Hallowe'en, Samhain, Hallows Eve, Samhain (Pagan Halloween), All Souls Night, Samhain Fires, Halloween, Samhain Blues, Great Pumpkin Waltz, Danse Macabre, Bewitched Theme, Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered, That Old Black Magic, Black Magic, Black Magic Woman, Witchcraft, Wyches, Witches' Brew Blues, Belladona and Aconite, Love Potion # 9, I Put a Spell On You, Evil Eye, Witchy Woman, Spooky, Witch, How to tell a witch (excerpt from Monty Python’s Holy Grail), In the Hall of the Mountain King, Burning The Shrouds, Hecate, Hecate Cerridwyn, Wytches Chant, Night on Bald Mountain, Shadow Dance, Werewolves of London, Moonchild, Moon Over Bourbon Street, Looking For Dracula, Bela Lugosi's Dead, I am Eternal, Funeral March of a Marionette.

Okay, it's pretty clear that I have lost my mind. I have gone over to the Dark Side; I have given money to Mattel. "What's black and orange and absolutely enchanting all over?" Orange-streaked hair and a dress that looks like it's on fire..?! Barbie has had all sorts of jobs, but this is the first time that I recall any particular spiritual beliefs. Hey, who knew? Barbie's a Witch!

Typically, I object strongly to Barbie, what she stands for, and the company that makes her. I saw this one, though, and thought "Hey, she's actually kinda cute!" A few days later, I ran into the Target exclusive Kelly doll, and figured, in for a penny, in for a pound. I even went so far as to look for a witchy Skipper doll, but I didn't find one. I guess only two of the sisters are following that Path.

Since I started the Barbie-the-Witch collection, Mattel has obliged me with
• Enchanted Halloween (2001)
• Halloween Glow (2002)
• Halloween Fortune (not a witch as such, but a fortune-telling gypsy; 2003)
• Halloween Enchantress (2004)
• Halloween Star (2005)
• Halloween Wishes (Target exclusive; 2005)
• Halloween Party Kelly as a witch (Kelly Club, Target exclusive; 2001)
• Halloween Party Loreena as a witch (Kelly Club, Target exclusive; 2002)
• Halloween Party Jenny as a witch (Kelly Club, Target exclusive; 2003)
• Halloween Party Kelly as a witch (Kelly Club, Target exclusive; 2004)
• Halloween Party Becky as a witch (Kelly Club, Target exclusive; 2005)
• Secret Spells Barbie, Christie and Kayla (2003)

Also, Barbie as Glinda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz (1995), Barbie and Ken as Morgan Le Fey and Merlin (2000) Samantha from Bewitched (2002), Kelly as both Glinda and the Wicked Witch (2004). (If I missed any spell-casting Barbies, let me know, would you?)

A brief editorial about Hallowe'en and children in America:
I'd like to say that those people who regard this holiday as sinful, demonic, un-Christian, dangerous (etc.) are completely missing the point of it. While the roots may have begun in long-ago Celtic bonfires, today it is largely a big party for kids to dress up, stuff themselves with candy and have a good time. Perhaps if those disapproving folks would loosen up a bit, they'd have a little fun at the end of October themselves. (Read the section on "boo-ing" below for more about how to do that.) No one is going to go to hell because they dressed up and went trick-or-treating, or attended a costume party. As for those young hoodlums who go 'round smashing jack-o-lanterns... well, I can only hope they get some punishment for their malicious acts of vandalism, but hell seems a bit strong.

I got email from a lovely woman in Colorado who had this to share:

The air is cool the season fall
Soon Halloween will come to all
The spooks are after things to do
In fact, a spook brought this to you
“BOO” is a shield from witching hour
Just hang it up and watch its power
On your front door is where it works
It wards off spooks and scary jerks
The treats that came with crypted note
Are yours to keep, enjoy them both
The power comes when friends like you
Will copy this and make it TWO
Then others here among our friends
Will give warm fuzzies that do not end
We’ll all have smiles upon our faces
No one will know who “BOO”ed whose places
Just one short day to work your spell
Or a big ZAP will strike your tail
And don’t forget a nifty treat,
Like something cute or something sweet
Please join fun, let’s really hear it
And spread some “BOO”s and Halloween spirit.

Here's what you do:
1. Place BOO in your window for neighbors to see (after receving a BOO).
2. Pass two "scare" packages on to your neighbors who haven't been "BOO"ed yet including poem and BOO pictures.
3. Watch to see the fun spread around the neighborhood.

The lady who sent me that originally emailed me to ask if I knew about this particular custom. I confessed I'd never heard of it, and told her that if she found the poem she was looking for, that I'd love to see it. This was something a woman in her neighborhood always did in October. The woman moved away, and she wanted to keep up the tradition (told you she was a lovely woman), and was trying to hunt down the poem. Apparently, someone else wanted the tradition to stay alive, too, because she received a BOO later that week with the poem below!

Happy Halloween
This treat is for you, we hope you enjoy.
The idea is simple, one we hope you employ.
You pass "BOO" along to two other neighbors.
Along with any kind of Halloween favors.
If we all do our part, and spread the good cheer,
By Halloween night it will be very clear,
We're a friendly bunch, we like to share fun
So please do your part to keep "BOO" on the run!

What a fabulous way to be neighborly! She said "It's such a great thing to drive around the neighborhood and see the kindness spread." She gave me permission to put it here, "hopefully other neighborhoods will follow." Okay, all you Halloweenies! You have your assignment; go BOO someone!

Since first posting this BOO tradition, I have received email from a number of people who have participated in this fun Halloween activity. One nice man sent me the link that other BOO-ers may find interesting/helpful.

You've Been Boo'ed! -- Please note that in some part of the US, the tradition is called "ghosting" and that website has a sister site for that, but they appear to have the same content.

NEW! Won't You 'Boo' My Neighbor ("Boo Grams") -- this one has a downloadable boo gram!

NEW! Here's another PDF of a Boo Gram, all ready to print

Tricks and Treats
and Hallowe'en History

History

Victoriana

Modern Interpretations

Boo-ing and Ghosting

Links