[graciegirl]

When I was a kid in central Ohio there were two days of celebration; the night BEFORE Halloween when kids went door to door was called "Beggars Night. We weren't allowed to go out on Halloween night itself because that was when people soaped windows and threw corn and beans on peoples porches and did other pranks.

We didn't say "Trick or Treat", we said; "Tonight is beggars night and we have come to beg a bite". We were given apples a lot, and some candy, but not big candy bars in our neighborhood. Our costumes were homemade and there were a lot of "bums" because that was easy to do.

People did feed "bums" a lot when I was a kid and they would come to the back door and say "Do you have any work to do, Missus?

I don't recall Halloween having anything to do with REALLY scary things or the undead or horror back then. But my older cousins TRIED to scare us....and succeeded with me, the wuss.

It is interesting to see how people have varied views on things, but back then even the kids who were very conservative Christians went out "begging".

There was a big move later at some time called "Fun without Distruction" because I guess the folks who went out on Halloween night were going too far. No self respecting mom on our street would allow their kids to go out on Halloween night.

I think that how we look at things or are taught to look at things adds the connotations of bad or good. No bad thing was associated with Halloween to me ever and still is not, but I was surprised here when I hung some Halloween treats on neighbors doors in Hadley and one was returned and she explained her religious feelings.

Again I say that whether it was wiccan a long time ago doesn't make it evil to me. I was not taught to interpret Sacred Scripture in that way either. I won't change.

We got to wear our costumes to school and all the kids got to parade through the other kids classrooms and show off their costumes. As a teacher, I dressed up too. It was only in the eighties that Halloween was "shut down" in public schools where I lived.