I love All Saints Day because, as this article at Catholic Culture says, it fills me with hope.
Today, we feel the power of being surrounded by this great cloud of witnesses and we experience the hope and anticipation of one day joining them in God's presence.
And about last night? Well, for the record, we are a family that celebrates Halloween. It's become quite the Daddy-daughter thing over the years, with the kids and Atticus plotting out the best candy routes (amidst much giggling.) Of course I emphasize the Catholic roots and connections (yesterday we read about going "souling" or "soul caking") and we often refer to it as "All Hallow's Eve" rather than "Halloween" to reinforce what it really is.
We talk quite a bit about both All Saints Day and All Souls Day as they approach and about why we don't want evil-looking or inappropriate costumes. And then we have the chocolate-related fun.
On All Hallow's Eve, we usually go to the All Saints vigil Mass then head home and get into costumes (I always go as a homeschooling mom, but no one ever guesses what I am.) We often trick-or-treat at the local convent -- the sisters love to have visitors and see the kids' costumes. (One year, one of my favorite nuns dressed up as St. Jerome.)
Then, we execute The Plan: Candy Galore. Door to door, neighbors we know, the whole family together. The kids say, "Thank you! God bless you!" to everyone and the reactions range from delight and surprise to odd looks.
And, yes, I let them eat lots of candy, and I let them eat it for breakfast the next day and I rarely give any of it away or complain that it causes cavities. We just enjoy it. That's what feast days are for, as noted in this fun article by Jeffrey Tucker.
Last night, as she surveyed her haul, Ramona said, "You can never have too much candy."
I replied, "Well, sometimes you can have too much at a time, but ...."
"But," Ramona said, quite seriously, "you can never own too much candy."
Not on All Saints Day anyway. It is indeed a day to celebrate.
6 comments:
Amen to all of the above, and please give that cute little candy-owner a hug for me. (That makes how many hugs that I've asked you to pass on? I can't help it! She's just so sweet.)
Ramona is so, so right. What a smart little girl!
I LOVE the idea of unbridled candy - we try to be very unrestrained for two days and then practice more moderation. But those are two VERY fun days.
I enjoyed that article you linked to, Karen! It reminded me of a quote from Chesterton:
"Wherever the Catholic sun doth shine
There is always laughter and good red wine.
At least I have always found it so, Benedicamus Domino.”
Yes, yes, and yes! Thanks, Karen!
Jane Ramsey, it was Hilaire Belloc, not Chesterton. But a lovely quotation anyway.
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