hallowweeeeeeeeeeen

when they were little we didn't trick-or-treat.  we put them to bed early so they didn't have to see the gory teens and made little slips of poems with the gospel message and handed them out with (really good) candy.  it was easier to avoid the world's interpretations of the holiday, and still feel like we were hospitable.  as they got a bit older we enjoyed the little harvest festival thrown for the community by our local church.

then we moved to our current neighborhood and one halloween we went to a church-sponsored event and came home and discovered our whole neighborhood had been at our door and welcoming us to theirs and we were gone.  that night i went to bed with a sick feeling in my gut that we had missed the biggest opportunity to build relationship in our community and we haven't missed a year since.

now we throw a party.  this year we even dressed up (don't ask!).  we giggled with the retired snowbird neighbors who are sure to come back to their winter home in time to participate, who flew an 8-foot bat down the drive on a pulley system, and of whom the wife dressed as a gypsy with her cauldron of goodies.  we enjoyed every minute with our good friends and their kids, moms and dads taking turns looping the blocks.  we shared haystacks and driveway-crockpots of chili and bacon-wrapped pineapple and goat cheese and who-knows-what-else.  and oh-my-gracious, will we have some serious sweets to take to church to share with all those  less fortunate.

each has to follow his own conviction, and we are glad, for now at least, that we can enjoy this crazy and fantastical opportunity to be silly with our kids and our friends, and to build relationship in the community in which we live.

party on...  (angela)