The Virtueof Essays

My computer has no printer, and so rather than retype this puppy from the laptop, I'm just sticking it up here. But it's really not all too interesting. Let's hear it for school essays. *boo*

Halloween EHow it Should be Celebrated

Robyn Hauck ENG121

	I should tell you right away that I love Halloween. I know of no holiday
that is so full of creativity, fun, and (yes) candy. I still go trick or
treating, at eighteen, because I love dressing up with my friends and
playing pretend for an entire evening. 
	It seems a shame to me that many other people don't enjoy this occasion as
much as I do. Many people stop trick or treating when they are thirteen or
so. Younger children dress up in cheap, plastic, store-bought costumes and
don't seem to enjoy the festivities at all. Some adults decorate their
homes, dress up, and give out candy, but many regard Halloween as a
frivolous kid's holiday. I believe my family has the right idea about
Halloween. It should be celebrated creatively and joyously. If more people
would get into the spirit of the holiday, they would discover how much more
fun it could be.
 Older children usually stop trick-or-treating at about thirteen or so,
claiming that it's a little kid's holiday. They stay at home and give out
the candy, or don't celebrate at all. They often scorn their peers who
choose to go out despite the pressures from peers to grow up. Many of them
give up going out on Halloween because they think adults will not welcome
older children participating in trick-or-treating.
 I have a hard time understanding why Halloween should be thought of as
exclusively for small children. My family never bought into this idea. This
year, my sister and I, my best friend, her boyfriend, and my girlfriend came
along with my dad and my younger cousins trick-or-treating. My sister is
seventeen, I'm eighteen, and my assorted friends are all nineteen. My
cousins are twelve, ten, and eight. I've found the perception that older
children are not welcome to celebrate alongside the younger kids to be for
the most part not true at all. Most people laugh when they see our large
group of happy kids, and many encourage us to continue to celebrate. "You're
never too old to enjoy the season!" seems to be the general refrain. The
public's general approval of our celebration may be partly due to the time
and thought we obviously put into our costumes and how much fun we're all
having. 
 Kids who do celebrate Halloween often do so in a consumerist and wasteful
manner. While out trick-or-treating, I see many little children in
store-bought, plastic, cheap costumes (usually Batman or Snow White). Most
of these kids will run around for an hour frantically gathering as much loot
as possible. At the end of the evening, they will consume every single piece
of their candy, get sick, and throw their plastic, cheap, boring costumes
away. 
 This is not what Halloween is about to me. I love making my costumes and
coming up with creative and interesting ideas for who or what I could be.
Since I was nine or so, I've made it my personal mission to be something for
Halloween that nobody else I met would think of. We make all our own
costumes, and often the entire group has a theme for the costumes. In the
past few years my family has been, among other things, Underwear Man and
Skid Mark; the Egg Lady, which involved a hat with blown eggs dangling from
it and a rubber chicken; Godzilla; The Poor Unfortunate Viking Woman With
Eight Children versus the Evil Dark Lords of the Pirate Sith Pillow; the
Mona Lisa; officers in the Artist Army; and a Chicken Abuse protester. One
year all the older kids were eighties cartoon characters - Lady Lovelylocks,
Rose Petal, and Strawberry Shortcake.
 Children who buy their costumes and are Power Rangers or the Little Mermaid
probably have fun as well. However, I believe that children who engage
themselves in making their own costumes will have fun creating them and will
think of more creative and interesting things to be at Halloween. 
 The benefit of being creative with your Halloween costume is that it
encourages other people to be creative. Adults who try to guess kid's
costumes have no problem recognizing a fairy or a devil or the Grim Reaper,
but the Egg Lady usually stumps them. And both the child and the adult are
enormously pleased when they guess right. Only one person recognized
Strawberry Shortcake last year, but both she and I felt creative and smart -
I for creating a identifiable costume, and she for remembering a
twenty-year-old cartoon character. Creative thought encourages creative
thought. And the world can always use more creativity and originality.  
 Some adults get into the spirit of Halloween. They may decorate their
house, give out candy, and/or dress up. But most adults don't dress up or
decorate, and many don't give out candy. They should get into the spirit
along with everyone else. We all need gaiety and excitement in our lives,
and adults aren't any exception.

Again, my family's behavior differs from most. We love to carve pumpkins, and there are always four or five on our front walk. My mom stays home and hands out candy. My dad and uncle accompany the kids on our trick-or-treating escapades, and it's possible that their Halloween costumes are the best out of everyone. In past years, they have been construction workers with screwdrivers through their heads; Fritz and Heiny, the Dutch couple (my dad's blond wig, made from two skeins of yellow yarn, was a smashing success); Rocky and Bullwinkle; and, most memorably, Underwear Man and Skid Mark. People took their pictures while we were out. Moms came out of houses to give them treats.

 I am firmly convinced that more adults should dress up and decorate. They
seem to love other people's efforts. America in general has an insecurity
complex that tells them that no one will appreciate their creative efforts,
and that they will be mocked and laughed at. In truth, most people seem to
love creative effort on the part of others. We as a society ought to take
the leap and celebrate creatively.  
 Halloween is a great holiday that is not celebrated with enough joy and
creativity. People stop celebrating because they are afraid that people will
laugh or frown upon them. Little children who are allowed to celebrate don't
take advantage of it and often wear store-bought costumes that don't
challenge or involve the imagination. Most people really appreciate creative
effort on the part of other people, even though they are scared to be
creative themselves. We need to open ourselves up and allow ourselves to be
creative and fun.