pumpkin jack.

On this night of all hallows' eve, the earth transforms. The dead are once again alive.

It is about this time of year, the beginning of September, that my anticipation for Halloween begins. This holiday has always been my favorite. Halloween is the climax of the fall season. The golden, red, and brown leaves litter the earth, leaving the trees bare and life-less. The breeze is cool, and I need a jacket when I go out. the sky seems not so bright like it did during the summer. Life is changing.

On the first of the wonderful month of October, I am allowed to put up our Halloween decorations, well, the pumpkins at least. I always have a mind to put the decorations up when the weather becomes cooler in September, but my mom just calls me ridiculous.

We have some of the best decorations. First of all, they are stored in this antique, big, black trunk in our basement. My mom has had the trunk for a very long time. It has an incredibly distinct smell that always makes me happy inside because the smell means - IT'S HALLOWEEN! It's a stale smell, like most old artifacts, only there is a tinge of sweet also. The black trunk is split into layers, separated a removable shelf. Place mats, witch cloaks, and orange light bulbs are on the removable shelf. Beneath are the sacred ceramic pumpkins. My mom has been collecting ceramic pumpkins since before I was born. We have one pumpkin with a black top hat that is over 50 years old. DO NOT DROP THIS - always the warning when handling the pumpkin. It is my duty to arrange the ceramic pumpkins with the bale of straw on our front porch. Well, it's more like I don't let anyone else do it because I like it so much.

My family has other Halloween traditions besides the ceramic pumpkins. Every year we carve our own jack-o-lanterns. With our kitchen floor covered in newspapers, we scoop the guts our and saw faces into the pumpkins. Halloween is also my sister's birthday. We eat cake and celebrate before going out for the night.

Ah, Halloween is just so wonderful. So many of these memories and images come to mind, and I just smile with content.


entry: 3 september 2009