Houston McLaury-

With the chill set deep into the air, the leaves all but changed to wonderful shades of yellow, orange and red, sweater weather is in full effect as we march onward to inevitable snows of November and December. But, before we hit such a cold and dark time of the year, we are graced with one of the best holidays of the year: Halloween. From my youth, Halloween has always been a special time for me, dressing up as random fictional figures and heading to school in whatever outfit I had, watching age-appropriate kids’ movies like Monster House or some of the old Goosebumps TV series, Halloween has dug its claws into my past and the warm memories it always delivers is something I hold dear.

There are some other holidays that many prefer, though. The main few being in December like Christmas or Hanukkah, yet Halloween is simply better. For one, it’s not as cold as those holidays in December, with blistering wind and terrifying snow blowing and whipping about to restrict and restrain anyone who dares to venture out.

I also believe that the fall season is the perfect time for beautiful scenery to spring forth from the trees that are in the process of shedding their leafy heads. Jumping into these giant piles of leaves that have been raked, bagging them as a family, and setting them out to be picked up will stay firm in my mind for years to come. And, although it’s hard work, it’s work that is made fun by the people you do it with.

There is also the communal aspect of Halloween that I believe is lost during the December holidays as well. Sure, you spend time with your family and go to your respective place of worship during the December holidays, but very rarely do you visit your neighbors. Even rarer is striking a conversation with them during these months, because no sane person wants to be caught outside while they’re shoveling their driveway.

There is a communal aspect of Halloween that gets lost when transitioning to later holidays in the year, and I think this mainly has to do with the aspect of trick-or-treating. Halloween requires you to have a stockpile of candy on hand for incoming trick-or-treaters so as to not disappoint them. It also allows you to talk and meet new people who you might not have met before. It allows you to see new people, and depending on how festive they are, see some of their interests based on what they dress up as. Not to mention, it is also a good time in college to go out and meet new people; to celebrate after a tense session of midterms.

This communal aspect is further developed with friends and family through the activities people often participate in during the Halloween season. One of the main ways my family would do this is through setting up decorations to have the scariest room or house on the block. We would grab our decorations from the basement and set up ghosts on the front porch, skeletons in the window, and skeletons’ feet to stick out of any remaining leaf piles. Then, there are always the cornfield mazes, pumpkin carvings, and hot apple drinks on cold autumn nights that we would always savor. Doing these little things with friends or family deepens the bonds you hold with them, making jokes with the fantastic carvings made. Or, if you’re like me, you can spend the time lamenting about the terrible carving you do and just do your best to make a decent-looking face.

While the wholesome side of Halloween is always pleasant, the best part will always be the scares. Huddling together in a living room as you watch a new horror movie, gazing in terror at the effects on the screen is priceless with those you care about. Being scared and horrified at something together brings people close, it allows them to talk about their fears and allows them to share in comfort knowing that others also share that fear. The true joy of Halloween comes from sharing in these frights by either going to haunted houses, watching these terrifying movies, or exploring the fantastic decorations people set up for Halloween.

Halloween is the best holiday, not only because of the magnificent season it takes place in but because of all the activities you can do with friends and family to get closer to them. Along with this, there is the wonderful communal aspect of giving candy out on Halloween, where you will be able to see neighbors and those you’ve never met before. So, for the upcoming holiday, make sure to cherish it before we venture deeper into the unending cold of a Minnesota winter!