“Hallelujah, it’s Halloween!”

How did you celebrate Halloween growing up?

I was not allowed to celebrate Halloween as a kid. I know some Christians choose not to celebrate for various reasons, and I cannot quite remember why my parents didn’t allow us to celebrate Halloween, all I know is they just didn’t permit it.

And they didn’t just forbid us from dressing up. They didn’t just forbid us from collecting candy. They forbade us from doing anything on Halloween, period. On the night of Halloween, we would put a sign up on our front door saying, “No Trick Or Treat! We Do Not Celebrate Halloween. Have A Good Night!” And as if the sign wasn’t enough, we would have to turn the porch light off. And as if that wasn’t enough, we would have the lights turned off inside the house too! Our house would be the darkest and gloomiest on the street; talk about the irony! Lol! And if THAT wasn’t enough, I must have been too young to remember this personally, but we went to a “Hallelujah Party” at our church the next day! And then my brothers would get laughed at at the bus stop because they weren’t allowed to hang the night before.

I do not know if any of you were not allowed to celebrate Halloween, or even if you currently hold some beliefs about the 31st day of October. I think today, my family has begun to view Halloween as just another reason to get dressed up, rather than an outward celebration of something demonic. Even though they were not allowed to get dressed up and go trick-or-treating growing up, my brothers have participated in Halloween with their children, and even my mom has dressed up once! I love seeing photos of my nieces and nephews in their costumes.

What are my personal views on Halloween? I haven’t done any research about whether it’s an “evil” holiday or anything “non-Christian-like,” but I believe Halloween is a day to get creative and enjoy collecting candy with your children (or as young adults, just another reason to get dressed up and go to a party; you can never have too many reasons to do that). But guess what?! My childhood was not completely robbed from all things Halloween.

I moved to PA when I was 11 and at the age of 12 I was allowed to dress up for Halloween for the very first time! I was a witch (super “non-Chrisitan-like;” talk about the irony!) Man I remember that night — we first got to go to Walmart and participated in their trick-or-treat thing. And then we got to go trick-or-treating around the neighborhood in Union. And then we went back to my aunt’s house and poured out our candy bags in the middle of the living room floor and compared who got the most candy. I was finally able to get dressed up and collect my own candy!

The following year I remember throwing on my then-too-small cheerleading uniform and went trick-or-treating as a cheerleader. Then sadly, I do not recall getting dressed up for the remainder of my teenage years. Maybe it wasn’t “cool” to get dressed up and go trick-or-treating anymore. Or maybe I no longer had the desire to participate in the festivities. But then, once I got to college, the focus turned from “collecting candy” to “having another reason to get dressed up and go to a party.” Let’s take a trip down memory lane…

I went to West Virginia University, which we all know is the #1 party school. Despite the cold October temperatures, we made sure we got dressed up in something cute. I got all of my costumes from Party City or Spirit, but I think I ordered my Jupiter costume offline (I wasn’t a big DIY’er). Yall remember that show, Sailor Moon?! I loved that show, and I had (read, still have) a Sailor Moon alarm clock haha! I dressed up with my friend Ri’hana that year, she was Mars.

2011 was my last Halloween at WVU. The remainder of my Halloweens would be celebrated in Georgia. Naturally, I didn’t have many friends when I first moved here. In 2012 I did not dress up for Halloween or go to a costume party, but my besties Kyria, Shelby, and Ri’hana flew down here to visit! We carved pumpkins, which was my first time doing that, and we went to Hallowefest at Six Flags over Georgia (we were NOT prepared for how cold it was going to be!). And of course we went clubbing in Atlanta. And then I have no clue how or even if I celebrated Halloween in 2013. The year after that, however, I got a little back into the spirit, and I became a novice DIY’er!

For Velma, I got the orange turtleneck and red skirt from Goodwill (like the day of). I know yall seen the movie The Purge: Election Year, or at least saw trailers for it. I put my pink tutu I made from a 5K on my head, grabbed fake blood, a water gun, and silver spray paint from the dollar store, and cut up a tank top. My cousin Dayna and I had a lot of fun at the costume party in Atlanta that year! My last costume was another last-minute creation. My friends were getting dressed up to grab dinner and I was not prepared. I spent the afternoon at the thrift store but couldn’t find anything to go with what I already had at home. I then looked to my good friend Google and came up with “biker chick.” I already owned everything needed! I had the vest, fishnets, crop top, and boots. I cut out fingertips on my gloves and threw on a wig! No one knew who I was haha, but it was all in the spirit of having fun.

October 2015 was when I got word I didn’t pass the Bar exam, so I’m sure I wasn’t in the mood to dress up (5 whole years ago, wow!). 2017 I threw on a black dress and went to a friend’s birthday/costume party. 2018 I wrote a Facebook status saying I was knee-deep in preparations for a jury trial I had the following day, so couldn’t celebrate that year. Halloween 2020 is just around the corner, and I have NOT purchased a costume yet. Will I participate? I don’t know. I still have time to order something with 2-day shipping from Amazon or get creative in my closet.

I am not mad at my parents and I don’t hold any grudges for not being able to celebrate Halloween as a kid. Those moments (or lack thereof) have made me into who I am today. My brothers and I get a good laugh at it when we reminisce this time of year. I have been able to create my own meaning for Halloween and celebrate it how I see fit. I do not think it makes me, or anyone else, “less of a Christian” if we put on a costume on October 31st. It’s all about having fun! Even though 2020 has been a rough year so far, I hope that you all have found some safe ways to celebrate Halloween this year. The children look forward to this day, so let’s not rob them of that fun. Have a scary movie night outside, put on some costumes and have a candy hunt in the house (like an Easter egg hunt). Get creative. Make memories. Also, it’s going to be a rare but beautiful Blue Moon this year, be sure to catch it!

“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” — Isaiah 5:20, NKJV.

Moni Jay, Off the Record