Things That Go Bump In The night

The Night Time Visitor

As a little kid, I became more curious and often explored the woods and fields around my house. Between our house and my Grandparents' house was a piece of woods with a path between our houses where Dad ran a water line from their well to our house. Grandma Bill had the biggest flashlight I had ever seen, silver and it held 4 "D" cell batteries, she would use to come over for a visit in the evenings. She would walk down that path at night with Granddaddy Bud and walk back in the dark. They must have been very brave back then.While I had no problem exploring during the daytime, there's no way I would go down that path after dark!

I wasn't afraid of the dark, just what might be in the dark. Out in the country, that could be anything from dogs, deer or bigger things. I loved being outside during the daytime, but I was very comfortable being inside at night.

Out in the country, there are no street lights, so when it gets dark, it is really dark, unless there's a full moon. One such night, I went to bed, and it was very bright outside. As I lay there contemplating tomorrow's activities, I noticed the shadow of a dark figure move outside my window! It was the boogie man trying to get me! I screamed for my life for someone to help save me from certain doom. Mom comes running in first and sees the figure outside my window. As my dad gets in my room, she turned to him and explained what it was. It appears it wasn't the Boogie man after all! A horse had broken out of the corral next door and was eating grass next to the foundation of the house and lazily chewing as it stared blankly into my window. Dad called the neighbor and went outside to secure the horse until he got there. Mom assured me there was no real Boogie Man and everything was alright.

Halloween was cool, because we kids could become the boogie man for a change. Costumes were not as elaborate as they are today and usually just consisted of a plastic mask held on with a cheap elastic band that usually broke before the night was over. The plastic didn't smell that great, either! The local Lion's Club always put on a show at my elementary school auditorium with a womanless pageant show and cake walks, or Hee Haw skits with treats set up in the library for sale, handcrafted by the ladies in the community.

It was impossible to go trick or treating by foot because houses were separated by a quarter mile or more, so we had to go from house to house by car, or even better, in a pick-up truck or farm truck full of hay with a dozen kids cuddled up in thick jackets. I guess that's why even today, I love the chill of the Autumn air, even though the chemo has me wrapped up in a blanket these days. 

Back then, treats were often homemade. Candied apples, rice crispy treats and pulled taffy. This was long before a razor blade was found in an apple or laced with LSD. None of us would ever pull a vicious attack on other's property and respected their pumpkins and decorations, so tricks were limited to out plastic masks.

My Dad loved every holiday, and was basically a kid during the seasons. One year, my folks created a man in overhauls stuffed with hay, sitting in a chair in the front yard waving at the cars that came by. He had a pumpkin head and a straw hat, and to be honest, was a pretty good Halloween decoration coming from my parents. Apparently, someone else liked it and stole it from the yard. That's the first time I can recall ever having anything stolen around from us. My Dad was devastated because he was so proud of his creation and felt violated somebody went in the yard and stole it.

Halloween has certainly changed a lot over the centuries and continues to evolve today. Memories are made, lessons learned, and the cavity creeps rejoice!