Happy Halloween! What face did you choose for your pumpkin this year? Is it funny? Scary? This week I want to share a few “fun facts” about this season’s sometimes-spooky holiday. Perhaps the most famous icon of the Halloween holiday is the jack-o’-lantern, which is of Scottish or Irish origin. The original jack-o’-lanterns were used as lanterns by people who traveled the road at night. The scary face was to frighten away spirits or fairies who might otherwise lead them astray. They also were put on porches and in windows to cast the same spell of protection over the household. Bobbing for apples also may have descended from a Pagan ‘baptism’ rite called a ‘seining.’ The water-filled tub is a latter-day Cauldron of Regeneration, into which the novice’s head is immersed. The fact that participants in this folk game were usually blindfolded with hands tied behind the back also brings to mind the traditional apple bobbing that we enjoy today. Something to Think About “There is a child in every one of us who is still a trick-or-treater looking for a brightly-lit front porch.” – Robert Brault Weekly Challenge Funny one-liners you can use tonight with your trick-or-treaters. • What did one jack-o’-lantern say to the other? Cut it out! • What is a pumpkin’s favorite sport? Squash! • Why do jack-o’-lanterns have stupid smiles on their faces? You’d have a stupid smile too if you just had all of your brains scooped out! • What do you get when you cross a snowman and a vampire? Frostbite! • How do you repair a broken jack-o’-lantern? Buy a pumpkin patch! • What’s black, white and orange and waddles? A penguin carrying a jack-o’-lantern! • Why do pumpkins never quarrel? Because they have no stomach for fighting!
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