Halloween was a blast here!
Costumes first! Colleen decided to be the Phantom from the Phantom of
the Opera and Abigail decided at the last minute after A LOT of convincing that she wasn't too old to dress up so she went in her new Pooh Bear pajamas holding her teddy bear with her pillow. We carved our pumpkins early in the day while we Skyped with Tina, Mike and Morgan. Also, we had dinner for lunch so we could be
ready for a quick exit from the house.
School wasn't an issue because the kids completed all of their school lessons for Friday earlier in the week so we could really enjoy Halloween. I love that aspect of online school.
We didn’t know what to expect with regards to
trick-or-treating here. This is very
important information. So, we asked the local check out lady at the grocery
store to give us the skinny on what to expect.
She said that the trick-or-treating begins around 3:30. So, the girls were ready and raring to go
right at 3:30 on the dot. But, there was
no one, I mean no one, out and about in the neighborhood at that time. We even got in the car and tootled around looking for these mythical trick or treaters. We returned home to find a murder of crows all over our house and grounds. It was SUPER creepy.
It appears the cashier--our local source of wisdom--failed us. So, we waited
until it got dark and let the girls loose on the neighborhood. It had started to rain and I expected them
back lickety split. But, I underestimated the desire of my kids to immerse themselves in sugar
happiness. They were out there for 30
minutes.
They cleaned up!
People here don’t just give one or two candies—they give several large handfuls
and medium Ziploc bags full of chocolate, candy, lollys, crisps (chips),
popcorn, truffles, and other assorted and sundry goodies. Some of the stuff is exactly like what we
have in the States, but the kids have had some fun discovering all the new
flavors and varieties of candy Ireland has to offer.
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| Colleen head first into her Halloween Candy Bag |
Once the kids had sorted, carefully looked at their take and done some candy trading--a tradition in the Cakebread household--we bundled up in our rain proof jackets and got our flashlights. We jumped in the car and headed to Athboy,
County Meath. We grabbed take away (they
all had hamburgers and fries) and went off to the park to have a Halloween
adventure.
Halloween began here in County Meath. We went to one of the earliest sites
associated with the pagan celebration of Samhain (pronounced sowan). In pagan (and possibly earlier) times, the religious
sites were generally found on the tops of hills. People would gather on those hills at
ceremonies around the island and light huge fires. Kings would take part of
these fires back to their castles and use them to light the fires in their
hearths for the new year. Samhain marks the end of the Celtic calendar and the beginning a new
year. This explains why we have been
hearing fireworks all day into the night—people are ushering in their new year. The early Celts believed that you could not
begin anything without first experiencing darkness so they begin their year in
winter.
When Christianity came to the island, the early priests
combined Samhain and All Souls Day. So,
along with being the new year, Halloween is thought to be the day the veil
between the living world and the realm of the departed is at its thinnest. As in Latin America, they treat this as a day of remembrance.
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| Walking with torches. |
But, back to the pagans…one of the earliest Celtic stories tell of a goddess named
Tlachtga (pronounced clodagh). We joined
in on a walk that has been in her honor for centuries. We met in a park in Athboy and walked
approximately 1.5 miles up to the Hill of Tlachtga (also called the Hill of
Ward). We were joined by many people and
were given an introductory talk by the local historians complete with a dozen
tiki torches. Those torches give off a
surprising amount of light.
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| Ideas for my next backyard. |
We passed
some amazing fire logs and I have a ton of new ideas when I finally get a backyard
again. Once on the hill, we were
spectators to a High Priestess of the Driuds and Magi who opened the circle and
summoned Tlachtga in her ancient tongue.
After the circle was opened, we were treated to a master
storyteller who told the tale of Tlachtga complete with actors. The audience was taught a song so we got to
be participants in the storytelling. It
was fascinating, fun and sometimes campy.
There were some irritating audience members who were rude and created
small disturbances. But, overall, the
storytelling and pageantry was fun. We even got to hear bagpipers!
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| The ceremony. |
I’m really glad we went because after the story the
remembrance of the dead began. People
from all around the world sent in names to be read at the end of this
ceremony. These names are read as a
tribute to the dead not only to remind ourselves they are not forgotten, but to
let the spirits know they are missed.
Once the official list was read, people were invited to call out the
names of their missed loved ones. I had
chills as people called out the names of people you could tell they missed
dearly. Keith Oakley was one of the
names our little family had uppermost in our minds. It is important to keep the people who have
left us alive in our hearts.
We bailed before the High Priestess closed the circle and
walked down the hill before the crowd could block us in. The sheer number of people in that small little space convinced us that beating a hasty exit would work in our favor. The rain held off all through the walk, storytelling and remembrance. We only had a couple of drops on the walk back down the hill. The locals would have us thanking Tlachtga for the good weather as it poorer everywhere else.
I’ll never look at Halloween as just a day to dress up in a
costume and eat candy. Which I have always enjoyed doing. Instead, I’ll always have the image of the bonfire at
the top of a hill in Ireland. The fire that was intended to light all fires. From one hill to the next, from one family to the next. I’ll know
that this day is a day to bring in the new year and remember the ones we have
lost. To connect with the dark before enjoying the light.
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| Happy Halloween! |
Love.
ReplyDeleteIt was pretty great.
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