Happy Halloween everyone! There are many Halloween traditions that many families practice throughout the world. Ever wonder where the Halloween tradition comes from? It originated at the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. This is a Pagan tradition to welcome the harvest at the end of the summer months. The Pagan people would light fires and make food while dressed up in costumes to scare off the ghosts. This was how they started the new season of harvest and the new year in their culture.
The tradition of trick-or-treating has many stories and legends behind it. One of the most common and most realistic explanations behind the tradition is where people early on in the world would impersonate the spirits of dead people and would offer gifts on their behalf. This also suggested that they “personify the old spirits of the winter, who demand reward to exchange for good fortune.” Some people think that Halloween is associated with All Hallows Eve however there is no mention of Halloween in the Catholic Bible. 
Over time this tradition has evolved into our modern society. This is the new holiday of the fall. Children associate this holiday with the fall season, with the falling leaves, pumpkins, and the weather starting to get colder. This is also the time that the kids dress up in costumes and go trick-or-treating with their friends. Trick or treating has become the main tradition of Halloween.
Another common tradition for Halloween is pumpkin carving. Many people carve faces and other designs into the pumpkins. They then will put them outside their front door to have for the kids to see on Halloween. They also will put fake or real candles inside of them to make them jack-o-lanterns. The name jack-o-lantern comes from the Irish folktale “Stingy Jack”. 
Another common activity around the Halloween season is haunted houses. There are many haunted houses around the Denver area that get much attraction each Halloween season. A couple of examples are Frightmare, The 13th Floor, and Terror in the Corn, all popular attractions. All of these haunted houses cost money and usually have a long line that you have to stand in before. This puts them at a disadvantage because of the usual long wait time, especially in the cold weather.
People of all ages still dress up. One of the most popular costumes this year was Barbie. This was because of the recent release of the Barbie movie. Many people dressed up in the iconic Barbie outfits and a popular costume for boys was either Ken or Allen, the main male characters in the Barbie movie. Other popular costumes were Ice Spice, Magic Mike, and Vampires. 
Other popular costumes for younger kids are Lightning McQueen, football players, pumpkins, and other characters from popular TV shows.
This year for Halloween I am going to go Trick or Treating with a couple of my friends. Some people may think that they are too old for trick or treating but anybody can go trick or treating. There is no age too old to continue this Halloween tradition.
