"It's disturbing," my older daughter said to me, "to go up to people's homes, ring the bell and beg for candy that I don't even want." I laughed, recognizing a typical stage in every child's life, when the desire to dress up for Halloween takes a bit of a sabbatical. Yet, I thought about the tradition all night as my neighbors traipsed from door to door, introducing their children to me (I was on candy-hand-out duty at my house), telling me they've seen us bike riding to school and would like to join us, or simply just practicing their good manners, please and thank you and "just take one, honey."
And in the midst of all this, it made me think of the earthen playhouse at Oakhurst Community Garden. Well, not so much the actual playhouse, which is made of straw and clay and recycled wine bottles for support in the walls, but rather the commentary and photos that are posted near the playhouse about how it was made. About how diverse members of the community came together, worked together and celebrated together. One sign says:
We often eat together, dance together and have live music celebrations at the mud building gatherings. It's important to embrace the joy of life together with a sense of purpose and positive intention.
My Halloween-boycotting daughter and some friends watched part of Forrest Gump instead of trick-or-treating last night. As Forrest says repeatedly, "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna' get." But when you go door-to-door, and you get to pick from a big bowl of chocolates, even if it's a bit of a disturbing tradition, you know what you're gonna' get. And it's called community.
Good thing I've never made her sit on the fat, bearded stranger-in-the-red-suit's lap!
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