I won’t be home for Halloween this year. I’ll be in Brazil, celebrating my mother’s 92nd birthday.
Although I no longer dress up, I still love sitting on the porch for a couple of hours, watching the parade of costumed children delight in their candy treasures. There’s no pumpkin on my steps anymore; over the years, the Albany squirrels have had wild parties, leaving me with quite the cleanup afterward from October to Thanksgiving.
Halloween brings back cherished memories of my years in Rhinebeck, NY, my home away from home, where hundreds of children filled the village streets on a scavenger hunt for sweets. Even the local church joined in with pumpkins glowing warmly on the steps, and doors open in welcome.
When my daughters were young, I’d rush home early from work to help them into their costumes or host small Halloween gatherings before we set off trick-or-treating together.
As the years passed, I began to see that Halloween wasn’t merely about costumes, candy, and carved pumpkins; it was something older, something wiser. Beneath its playful surface lies an ancient whisper reminding us of truths our modern world often forgets.
The Gift of Shadow
Today, we live in a culture that reveres light (productivity, positivity, and endless success) while fearing the quiet power of darkness. But Halloween arrives each year to remind us that the shadow is not the enemy of light; it is its womb.
Autumn itself is a teacher of surrender. The trees do not resist their time of letting go; they release with color and grace. In doing so, they reveal their structure, their truth.
This Halloween, whether you’re dressing up your children, buying candy for little ghosts and princesses, or turning off the porch light for a quiet evening, ask yourself:
What within me is ready to fall away, to return to the soil of my becoming?
The night is generous. It holds you as you shed what no longer serves your soul.
Honoring What Came Before
This is also a time to remember those who walked before us, not in fear, but in gratitude.
Our ancestors, by blood, by spirit, by story, carried the fire that now burns in our hearts. Their love, their lessons, even their mistakes, are the fertile ground from which we rise.
Light a candle and whisper, “I see you. I carry your strength. I release your pain.”
Halloween, at its heart, is not about ghosts haunting us. It’s about love remembering itself across generations.
The Sacred Art of Transformation
There’s something profoundly symbolic about dressing in costume. On this night, we are invited to play with identity, to step beyond our fixed roles and meet the forgotten parts of ourselves. The mask becomes medicine. The costume becomes a mirror.
When you wear a new face, you glimpse the truth: you are not bound by any single one. Transformation is your nature.
Halloween whispers:
You are both the seed and the flame, the ending and the beginning, the light and the shadow.
Life and death are not adversaries but eternal dance partners, turning together in the rhythm of your becoming.
An Invitation to Remember
So this Halloween, whether you’re passing out candy, gathering with friends, or spending the evening in quiet reflection, take a moment to feel the pulse beneath the playfulness.
Honor the shadow. Thank your ancestors. Let something fall away.
And remember, every ending is just the soul’s way of making space for a new beginning.
If you like this article, please ‘LIKE,’ ‘SHARE,’ and leave a comment below to share your thoughts. You can visit the HOME page to get more insights into women’s life balance, relationships, spirituality, and leadership. For more inspiration, like my Facebook page and join the Mind, Body, and Wisdom group of like-minded women bmwisdom
