When do the winter holidays begin at your house? I confess that Thanksgiving and Christmas are the only two I give any attention, but with the commercialism of our culture my daughter gets into the spirit of the season early by insisting on a Halloween pumpkin. I benefit from her enthusiasm by having a lot of pumpkin to can for pies and bread later, so I don’t argue.
This year proved no exception. My adult son and daughter made their annual trek to the pumpkin patch and decided upon a large, twenty-seven pound sphere of orange. My daughter must have been excited because she carried the entire weight of it to the car, surprising my son.
Together they carved the monster, she cleaning out the inside with a spoon and he carving the face in a most traditional expression—jagged mouth, triangle eyes and nose. I don’t think the design much matters to either of them, they simply delight in repeating the annual ritual. Finished it will sit on our doorstep, ready to greet spooky visitors on Wednesday.
We’ll answer the door and hand out sweets to the few trick-or-treaters who find their way to our door. With the local malls handing out candy to any child in costume, parents find taking their miniature goblins and ghosts to the stores in order to stay out of the rain a welcome alternative to roaming the darkened streets at night. I don’t blame them.
We don’t do parties and we stopped buying candy a number of years ago. Instead we give granola bars—less sugar, a little smattering of nutrition, and something we can use the next day when the bowl by the door still has goodies in it. We don’t need the sugar, either.
However you spend Halloween, may you find it a pleasurable experience, one that sends you into the coming holiday season with renewed anticipation and joy. After all Christmas is where our journey to heaven all began.
Luke 2:12 … Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. …
Have a good week.
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
Beginning Sunday October 28, Mountain Brook Ink will feature a holiday blog tour involving all of the MBI authors as they speak from their homes and their hearts about the upcoming holidays. Prizes will be awarded and chances to win will be available at each blog stop. Check out mountainbrookink.com/blog 2018 Holiday Blog Tour