imposing october
the light and scent of the earth is changing. the days grow shorter as they fight to share these twenty-four hours with the night. we now begin greiving the days of hot sunshine, lemonade, lazy lake floating, and humid hikes. in its stead come crimson leaves falling through a crisper air, a cool afternoon exploring an orchard of apples, a stroll through a patch of pumpkins, and the warmth of pulling that first sweater of the season over your head.
for those of you who know me, i do not need to tell you that halloween is my favorite holiday. i know it's a bit dark, but i can't help it. i have ever-increasing fond memories of the holiday from my childhood. every single year, my mom took us trick-or-treating, and every next years' costume far surpassed the previous'. with the help of my mother, i threw a halloween party in 8th grade that people are still talking about TO THIS DAY (i'm serious... i occasionally hear from high school friends who will occasionally mention the party). the list of things i have disguised myself as in celebration of halloween are endless... the list follows, in no sequential order
~a witch
~punky brewster
~a hobo
~a ghost
~cindy lauper
~a paddidle (yes, a car with one headlight)
~a christian (don't blame me, i was in highschool. i think my hyper-evangelical youth pastor was trying to cure me of my love for halloween, so he suggested i dress up as a 'christian'. now, what, exactly, would that costume look like? i did suffer a breif departure from my love affair with the holiday, but upon awakening from my evangelical-sub-culture-induced slumber, i realized that loving halloween is, contrary to KTIS and Northwestern Bookstore, not a sin!!! departing soap box now...)
~a slightly inebriated female (was that a costume?)
~darlene zschech (pronounced 'check', as in darlene 'check me out')
~david crowder
below, i leave you with a lyric that will warm your heart and send you running to the kitchen for the pumpkin carving tools and candy corn.
John's Garden by Peter Mayer
Farmer John wandered back
When he reached the pumpkin patch, he began to speak
He said, "The weather's getting colder
Summer's over and it's almost Halloween
That's the day, the reason you were raised
When everything about your life will change
You will have eyes to see
And for that night, you'll be a bright lamp burning in the darkness
But remember that candle shines for only the briefest time
In a jack-o-lantern's heart"
The pumpkins held a meeting then
Some were very apprehensive and afraid
"Could this really happen to us?"
"What could be the meaning?" is what they were saying
"This is home, it's all we've ever known."
Then one bold, outspoken pumpkin spoke
He said,"I don't need eyes to see, it sounds like a lie to me
I like it just fine here in John's garden
And remember that candle shines for only the briefest time
In a jack-o-lantern's heart."
There is much to ask and to ponder in the pumpkin patch
When imposing old October shows up at last
Then a pumpkin from the farther end
Who had been silent up 'til then
Over the commotion, said "What would you rather have my friends?
A chance to shine, or die here on the vine?
The better way seems very plain to me...
You will have eyes to see
And for that night, you'll be a bright lamp burning in the darkness
So maybe that candle shines for only the briefest time
In a jack-o-lantern's heart
Oh, but one goblin's smile should make it all well worth while
You know you might even see the starlight
And knowing that time is brief makes it that much more sweet
When you have a jack-o-lantern's heart."
for those of you who know me, i do not need to tell you that halloween is my favorite holiday. i know it's a bit dark, but i can't help it. i have ever-increasing fond memories of the holiday from my childhood. every single year, my mom took us trick-or-treating, and every next years' costume far surpassed the previous'. with the help of my mother, i threw a halloween party in 8th grade that people are still talking about TO THIS DAY (i'm serious... i occasionally hear from high school friends who will occasionally mention the party). the list of things i have disguised myself as in celebration of halloween are endless... the list follows, in no sequential order
~a witch
~punky brewster
~a hobo
~a ghost
~cindy lauper
~a paddidle (yes, a car with one headlight)
~a christian (don't blame me, i was in highschool. i think my hyper-evangelical youth pastor was trying to cure me of my love for halloween, so he suggested i dress up as a 'christian'. now, what, exactly, would that costume look like? i did suffer a breif departure from my love affair with the holiday, but upon awakening from my evangelical-sub-culture-induced slumber, i realized that loving halloween is, contrary to KTIS and Northwestern Bookstore, not a sin!!! departing soap box now...)
~a slightly inebriated female (was that a costume?)
~darlene zschech (pronounced 'check', as in darlene 'check me out')
~david crowder
below, i leave you with a lyric that will warm your heart and send you running to the kitchen for the pumpkin carving tools and candy corn.
John's Garden by Peter Mayer
Farmer John wandered back
When he reached the pumpkin patch, he began to speak
He said, "The weather's getting colder
Summer's over and it's almost Halloween
That's the day, the reason you were raised
When everything about your life will change
You will have eyes to see
And for that night, you'll be a bright lamp burning in the darkness
But remember that candle shines for only the briefest time
In a jack-o-lantern's heart"
The pumpkins held a meeting then
Some were very apprehensive and afraid
"Could this really happen to us?"
"What could be the meaning?" is what they were saying
"This is home, it's all we've ever known."
Then one bold, outspoken pumpkin spoke
He said,"I don't need eyes to see, it sounds like a lie to me
I like it just fine here in John's garden
And remember that candle shines for only the briefest time
In a jack-o-lantern's heart."
There is much to ask and to ponder in the pumpkin patch
When imposing old October shows up at last
Then a pumpkin from the farther end
Who had been silent up 'til then
Over the commotion, said "What would you rather have my friends?
A chance to shine, or die here on the vine?
The better way seems very plain to me...
You will have eyes to see
And for that night, you'll be a bright lamp burning in the darkness
So maybe that candle shines for only the briefest time
In a jack-o-lantern's heart
Oh, but one goblin's smile should make it all well worth while
You know you might even see the starlight
And knowing that time is brief makes it that much more sweet
When you have a jack-o-lantern's heart."
posted by Anonymous at 4:06 PM
6 Comments:
i LOVE the visual words you've chosen. i felt autumn and i want to be in it.
You have no idea how sad I am to miss the annual Malette halloween party! What is perhaps the most difficult part about not being there this year is the logical next step in the Ashley-Malette-Worship-Hero costume, which she has been busy sewing together, Robin Mark!
For a sneak preview of Ashley's costume for this year, simply follow this web address...
http://www.integritymusic.com/artists/bio/mark.jpg
Matt
actually, i was thinking of dressing up as chris tomlin this year. he is, after all, god's favorite worship leader ;)
I, too, love fall (sadly, I am able to enjoy it less since I began teaching--it's also my busiest time). Speaking of non-evangelically-correct attire, I remember having a great time going out trick or treating one year as a devil. Yup, red shirt, red tights, a plastic pitchfork, and some kind pseudo-horns made out of red nylons with bits of stuffing in them (not at all effective). My folks are Presbyterians, God bless 'em. There's lots of benefits to my mainstream denominational upbringing.
You dressed up as David Crowder? With the goatee and everything? Sweet.
What about CANDY!!??!! For me, getting dressed up was a little fun, but I got really sick of being a ghost or a hobo. My mom wasn't all that helpful. But really, I didn't care about the outfit. I was all about the candy. That was back in the good ol' days when you could get a homemade popcorn ball - yumm! We used pillow cases for bags and we RAN from house to house to accumulate as much loot as possible. Ah! That was fun!
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