Here’s why you should get on board the ghost train this Halloween. Photo: Illawarra Light Railway Museum.
If the thought of Halloween taking off in Australia gives you nightmares, here’s why you’re the Grinch.
In the interests of full transparency, the closest I got to Halloween as a kid were The Simpsons specials and the one time a group of kids knocked on our door asking for lollies.
Unfortunately for them we were an ingredients house. I think Mum offered them some Sao biscuits and they decided they’d rather leave empty-handed.
Dad scoffed and pontificated at length and with great gloom about the Americanisation of Australian society.
So, first point – it’s not American. Halloween is originally from the UK, although the Americans and Canadians have taken it up with gusto.
While some things out of the US are a crime against God and nature – like their chocolate, their cheese, and their coffee – they do give us the occasional gem, like Billie Eilish, pecan pie and the aeroplane.
On that – Halloween is that rare celebration when you’re not expected to go to church. If you’re the kind of person who prides yourself on your extensive Richard Dawkins collection, you should support Halloween.
It’s a great excuse to dress up, decorate and have a party without getting embroiled in discussions about whose one true God is the truest.
Next point – if you’re worried that kids don’t play outside anymore, check the streets on Halloween.
The first year I realised the demon holiday had really made it in Australia I was driving home from work on a balmy November evening – you know the ones where it’s almost-but-not-quite muggy and the sunset makes everything kind of hazy.
Not traditional Halloween weather I admit, but I digress.
There were kids everywhere – gaggles of tiny tots with a supervising parent, groups of school-age kids looking very proud to be allowed to wander the streets unsupervised, and even a few teens who were amenable to being lured from their devices with the promise of chocolate.
It was delightful. I didn’t even know that many kids lived in my neighbourhood, and they were all having a ball.
If you want to see kids play outside more, be creative and interact with people off-screen, you can’t follow it up with a “no, not like that” on the one night of the year they actually do it.
Finally – it’s fun. There’s plenty of actual doom and gloom in the world at the moment. Why not seize any opportunity to find and share a bit of joy and whimsy with your community?
You can tailor Halloween to whatever level of spookiness your heart desires. Personally I’m more of a Rocky Horror Picture Show and Addams Family kind of gal, where my husband is more of a Silent Ridge and Nightmare on Elm Street kind of guy.
There are no tricky family expectations around Halloween. No-one cares how much you do or don’t dress up or decorate the house.
Plus, if enough people get on board, who knows – we could get an extra public holiday out of it.
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