My porch light will be on tonight, and there will be candy for whoever comes to the door.
I’ve also been thinking about how we got here, from old seasonal traditions to shopping carts full of candy, costumes, and plastic skeletons does.
Halloween falls on a Saturday this year. The last time that happened was 2020, and the next will be 2037. For families celebrating tonight, having Sunday before the school week starts is a welcome bit of timing.
I’ve visited Ireland and learned about Samhain, and that experience gave me a different appreciation for this time of year. In Irish tradition, Samhain marked the beginning of winter after the harvest. Irish stories and later folklore associated the season with the otherworld and spirits returning home. There was meaning attached to the changing season, the land, and the people who had come before.
Halloween also has Christian roots. Its name comes from All Hallows’ Eve, the evening before All Saints’ Day. The holiday we celebrate today developed through a mix of seasonal customs, religious observances, immigrant traditions, and changes here in America. The history is more complicated than an ancient festival simply getting a new name.
Somewhere along the way, it also became a very big business.
The National Retail Federation projects that Americans will spend $13.5 billion on Halloween this year, including $4.1 billion on candy. Those are estimates, but they give some idea of how much money surrounds this one holiday.
That commercial side bothers me. From my perspective, some of it feels like corporate appropriation: taking a celebration with deep cultural and religious roots and treating it mainly as another opportunity to sell something.
I understand that traditions change. People bring customs with them, adapt them, and make them their own. Still, I think it’s fair to wonder what gets lost when the shopping becomes such a large part of the celebration.
But when the doorbell rings tonight, I’ll be answering it with the candy bowl.
The kids coming up the walk are having an evening of costumes, make-believe, and excitement. I want them to have a good time. Passing out candy is also a small chance to say hello to the people who live around me. I value that.
I can question the money surrounding Halloween and still enjoy what happens on my own front porch. Handing a child a candy bar doesn’t require me to settle every question I have about the holiday.
I’d like us to remember a little more of the history. I’d like the meaning of our traditions to get some attention alongside the merchandise. And I’d like the kids in my neighborhood to have a happy Halloween.
So tonight, the porch light will be on.
Stop by. There’s candy.
