Happy Halloween!!
While the story of Halloween originates in Celtic and Christian lore, the modern day
American version is more about community, candy and parties than ghosts and
goblins. As a kid growing up in the suburbs, Halloween activities for me included
bobbing for apples, dressing up in homemade costumes, going to parties and
parading around the neighborhood with my brothers. As a mom in Manhattan,
Halloween means taking my kids into stores on Broadway, and climbing
down from the top floor of an apartment building, knocking on the doors that have
some sort of Halloween sign to indicate they are giving candy. Both then and now,
Halloween meant filling pumpkin-shaped baskets with candy, trading with siblings for
favorite treats, and then rationing the junk food for weeks after. Here’s what some
of our Schodack campers have to say about Halloween in their neighborhood:
Lila Podgainy, high-schooler in Manhattan, writes: At my school, NEST+M, you
are allowed to wear your costume to school the day of Halloween or the Friday
before it happens. The nice teachers give you candy at the end of their class. When I
was younger, I went to my Grandma’s big apartment building and knocked on all the
doors that said they were giving candy. We would climb at least 30 flights of stairs!
Also, on the Upper East Side, they close of some streets (near where my Grandma
lives) and we would walk around over there. Now because I’m older, I go to a
friend’s Halloween party instead of trick-or-treating. My favorite treat to get
would have to be butterfingers or the gummy crabby patties from SpongeBob.
Josie Hoeber, Middle Camper, from Los Angeles, CA writes: This year me and my family decorated my whole house, and we also went to a pumpkin patch. I am having
a party with a bunch of friends, and we are all going trick or treating together. We
are all wearing animal onesies, and they look very cute! My favorite candy is all of
the king sized Twix bars! Happy Halloween!
Isabel and Maya Goldberg, Super Seniors, wrote about memories from trick or
treating in Connecticut: The last Halloween in Connecticut that we can remember,
we were dressed as a teddy bear (Isabel) and Clifford the Big Red Dog (Maya). We
walked down Main Street in Ridgefield, CT, and our house was decorated with
pumpkins. We went door to door trick or treating, and there was always this one
house that was super decorated and they had the best candy – big chocolate bars.
Favorite candy: Isabel: Skittles; Maya: Kit Kat.
Here’s to all you of trick or treating, handing out candy or just eating some…have a
fun Halloween!!
