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How Does Your Ward Celebrate Halloween?


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I know some non-LDS church's tie-in Halloween with All-Saints day to make it less scary and more about recognizing deceased loved ones and family history. It seems like that would be a natural tie-in for LDS as well, but I've never seen it. I'm guessing because LDS don't typically think about or celebrate holidays like All-Saints Day.

It sounds like the Chili cook off, fall festival, and trunk or treat are the most common celebrations. Good times with Halloween!!

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37 minutes ago, MiserereNobis said:

In the very Catholic and hispanic town (well, village really) that I live in Halloween (All Hallows' Eve) is part of the celebration of All Saints' Day (11/1) and then All Souls Day (11/2) which is Day of the Dead. There is a lot of trick or treating, a celebration at the parish hall, and the preparation of the town plaza for Day of the Dead. It's a huge event -- altars everywhere on the plaza and in the evening the priest leads a procession from the church (which is on the plaza) out to the cemetery. It actually goes past my house. It's a beautiful tradition, even if you're not Catholic.

When I hear people complain how American culture is being displaced by "foreigners," how Mexican flags are flown within the US, etc., I want to haul them down to my town and ask them if they really want these beautiful Mexican traditions to end in the name of "America." Yes, our town celebrates Cinco de Mayo and Dies y Seis de Septiembre and flies Mexican and American flags for both celebrations. On the town plaza is a gazebo that has the American and Mexican flags painted on it -- that's because the Venta de La Mesilla (Sale of La Mesilla, the name of the town, which is known in English as the Gadsden Purchase).

Ok, enough of my rant :) I had just read another disparaging comment somewhere about Mexican flags in America and people speaking Spanish and it frustrates me because of the beautiful traditions and history of my town in New Mexico. We are very much in America (unless Trump's Colorado border wall becomes reality, ha) and also very much hold on to our traditions.

I'd always heard of the Day of the Dead tradition, but it wasn't until my husband and I took our part hispanic grandsons to one that I truly understood. It is my favorite tradition because it honors the dead. As I walked around with my grandsons we looked at each display. People display things that their loved ones who crossed over loved, it included their favorite foods/drinks and so much more. I wish Americans had this tradition, it's so heartwarming and truly honors family. https://www.ksl.com/article/46660582/understanding-day-of-the-dead-and-where-to-celebrate-it  ETA: This article was put out awhile back.

 

Edited by Tacenda
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7 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

I'd always heard of the Day of the Dead tradition, but it wasn't until my husband and I took our part hispanic grandsons to one that I truly understood. It is my favorite tradition because it honors the dead. As I walked around with my grandsons we looked at each display. People display things that their loved ones who crossed over loved, it included their favorite foods/drinks and so much more. I wish Americans had this tradition, it's so heartwarming and truly honors family. https://www.ksl.com/article/46660582/understanding-day-of-the-dead-and-where-to-celebrate-it  ETA: This article was put out awhile back.

 

Yeah, I used to think Day of the Dead was a creepy tradition, kind of like Halloween (I'm not a fan of Halloween).  But once I understood more about Day of the Dead I realized that it is a tradition that fits well with genealogy and remembering our ancestors.

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1 hour ago, Tacenda said:

Here in Utah it's going to be a cold night this Halloween. So that would be a draw to do these kinds of things right off, they can go into the church if they're cold, or it's doable because of the short time of length.  

Weather is another bonus to the trunk-or-treat setup. If it's unseasonably hot/cold, you only have to put up with it for a bit.

Plus, you've got access to the building on the off chance that your excited six-year-old forgot to go potty before putting his costume on.

Or, if you need to move everything indoors, as was the case with us a year or two ago when a thunderstorm came through forcing us to all relocate to the gym. 

 

Quote

I spoke with my MIL the other day and she was telling me that when her kids were young in Draper, Utah, there were several scary/awful pranks done to people, nothing like today, at least I haven't heard of this much.

When I was in high-school, one of my classes had an assignment where we had to interview an old person. I picked the oldest guy in our ward, and one of the things I distinctly remember him telling me that when he was a kid (for fun, on Halloween) they would take people's wagon wheels and put them on the top of their house.

He thought it was just soooo funny. I thought it was pretty good too, but I couldn't get over imagining what it must have been like to have grown up in a time when wagon wheels were still a thing and then living into the computer age. How cool must that have been. 

 

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1 hour ago, Amulek said:

 when he was a kid (for fun, on Halloween) they would take people's wagon wheels and put them on the top of their house.

 

Reminds me of how Halloween from the early 1900s was presented in this classic film.  It's like Lord of the Flies (starts at 3:15):
 

 

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4 minutes ago, cinepro said:

I think the problem is that her supporters want to have it both ways.  We're supposed to treat her voice and opinions as if they carry the same weight as an adult with more education and insight on the matter, but at the same time we need to protect her as the child that she is.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but from what I've seen (admittedly very little) she bases her presentation on fear and emotion, and never presents the actual data on which she is basing those fears and emotions (so it's impossible to respond by attacking the data).

Fine, if she's a child then we should give her words the same respect that we give to all other girls her age.

For me, her age is irrelevant.  We shouldn't mock her.  Her fear is real to her and needs to be addressed by someone she trusts.  However...

She presents a case that is based in emotion and lacks any viable solutions.  Because of this, I give her statements the very little weight that they deserve.

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3 hours ago, Tacenda said:

Here in Utah it's going to be a cold night this Halloween. So that would be a draw to do these kinds of things right off, they can go into the church if they're cold, or it's doable because of the short time of length.  

I spoke with my MIL the other day and she was telling me that when her kids were young in Draper, Utah, there were several scary/awful pranks done to people, nothing like today, at least I haven't heard of this much. So the city had Halloween done at a community building somewhere in town, to get them off the streets, lol. So before the idea of Trunk or Treat but along the same lines. I think @Scott Lloyd mentioned growing up in Draper, sorry if I got the wrong person, if not, I wonder if he remembers this. 

Not in Draper but about as close as you can get without actually being in it. 
 

The pranks I remember were minor things — tipping over outhouses, toilet papering houses, that sort of thing. 
 

it was not so much a matter of scary pranks but that we lived in farm country with the houses so spread out as to make trick-or-treating impractical. The Halloween parties at the local elementary school were held in the evening and were pretty much a community event: costume parade, spook alley, Disney Halloween cartoons, decorated classrooms, treat bags, etc. Very fun and memorable. That’s how we celebrated. 
 

Regarding the trunk-or-treat, our bishop announced Sunday the party was being moved into the cultural hall because of the forecast of inclement weather. 

Edited by Scott Lloyd
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6 hours ago, Amulek said:

I've got to be honest - that's one of my favorite things about trunk-or-treats: the blinding efficiency. From start to end, you're talking about 15 - 20 minutes tops, and the kids have all got a pretty good haul. No more walking around the entire neighborhood trying to divine which houses were participating (are there decorations? is the porch light on? etc.). No more ending the night with nothing but sucky treats.

Kids these days have got it pretty good. ;) 

 

Are you under the impression that the ward trunk-or-treat supplants neighborhood trick-or-treating? Not where I live. We do both, with the ward event held a couple of days earlier so as not to conflict with activities on Halloween proper. 

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30 minutes ago, cinepro said:

I think the problem is that her supporters want to have it both ways.  We're supposed to treat her voice and opinions as if they carry the same weight as an adult with more education and insight on the matter, but at the same time we need to protect her as the child that she is.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but from what I've seen (admittedly very little) she bases her presentation on fear and emotion, and never presents the actual data on which she is basing those fears and emotions (so it's impossible to respond by attacking the data).

Fine, if she's a child then we should give her words the same respect that we give to all other girls her age.

I, personally, give no weight to her words (partially for the reasons cited by rockpond, below).

12 minutes ago, rockpond said:

For me, her age is irrelevant.  We shouldn't mock her.  Her fear is real to her and needs to be addressed by someone she trusts.  However...

She presents a case that is based in emotion and lacks any viable solutions.  Because of this, I give her statements the very little weight that they deserve.

I find her age relevant and consider it in extremely poor taste for a 60+-yr-old man to be engaging in playground-style mockery of a teenage girl in a public forum.

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31 minutes ago, cinepro said:

Reminds me of how Halloween from the early 1900s was presented in this classic film.  It's like Lord of the Flies (starts at 3:15):
 

 

“Meet Me in St.Louis”? It’s a great flick. The well-known song “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is from that movie. 

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1 hour ago, Scott Lloyd said:

Are you under the impression that the ward trunk-or-treat supplants neighborhood trick-or-treating? Not where I live. We do both, with the ward event held a couple of days earlier so as not to conflict with activities on Halloween proper. 

We've done it both ways: on Halloween night and on a night other than Halloween (usually preceding).

When we've done it on Halloween proper, the trunk-or-treat pretty much supplants the regular neighborhood trip. The kids will still go out with my wife (while I distribute candy from home), but usually for not very long.

Given the haul they've already got waiting for them at home, there just isn't much of an incentive to walk around all night trying to get more.

Same sort of situation when we hold the ward activity early. We still want the kids to have the chance to wander around the neighborhood and whatnot, but they've already got plenty of candy by then, so the motivation to stay out very late just isn't there like it might be if that was all they were doing.

 

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I saw this posted on FB and remember the Halloween's when my mom was in a care center with late stage Alzheimer's. The post mentioned taking your kids to a rest home or care center if they are giving treats out. The residents absolutely love it!

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On 10/26/2019 at 4:20 PM, Hamba Tuhan said:

We don’t. We also don’t celebrate Presidents’ Day, the Fourth of July or Thanksgiving Day either. 

I’ll guess that  there are some days you celebrate over there that we don’t celebrate over here?

This year, costumed families and organizations picked a classroom, decorated the door, and passed out treats. Kids games in the cultural hall....after our chili and cornbread dinner. I brought my famous New Mexico-style “Clear the Camp” chili rojo con carne y frijoles. Most folks didn’t have the wherewithal to eat a full bowl. I understand the reluctance.

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6 hours ago, Tacenda said:

I'd always heard of the Day of the Dead tradition, but it wasn't until my husband and I took our part hispanic grandsons to one that I truly understood. It is my favorite tradition because it honors the dead. As I walked around with my grandsons we looked at each display. People display things that their loved ones who crossed over loved, it included their favorite foods/drinks and so much more. I wish Americans had this tradition, it's so heartwarming and truly honors family. https://www.ksl.com/article/46660582/understanding-day-of-the-dead-and-where-to-celebrate-it  ETA: This article was put out awhile back.

 

We do. We look around for our dead and take them to the temple when we find them.

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22 hours ago, ttribe said:

No, that's not fair in the least.  I may not agree with her environmental position, but I know better than to MOCK A CHILD for my own entertainment.  Moreover, nothing in Scott's post was criticizing her position on an issue; it was pure grade school playground bullying and one would think a grown man who is somewhere North of 60 years old would know better.  Just because she is in the public eye, that does not justify ridiculing her personally.  It's classless.  End of story.

Did the relentless public mockery of Nick Sandmann raise your gorge, too?

 

Edited by Bernard Gui
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28 minutes ago, Bernard Gui said:

I’ll guess that  there are some days you celebrate over there that we don’t celebrate over here?

This year, costumed families and organizations picked a classroom, decorated the door, and passed out treats. Kids games in the cultural hall....after our chili and cornbread dinner. I brought my famous New Mexico-style “Clear the Camp” chili rojo con carne y frijoles. Most folks didn’t have the wherewithal to eat a full bowl. I understand the reluctance.

From one who “fears no kim chee,” that’s hardly surprising. 

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33 minutes ago, Bernard Gui said:

I brought my famous New Mexico-style “Clear the Camp” chili rojo con carne y frijoles. Most folks didn’t have the wherewithal to eat a full bowl. I understand the reluctance.

As a fellow New Mexican, I might understand the reluctance, but I don't excuse it ;) 

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13 hours ago, Amulek said:

I've got to be honest - that's one of my favorite things about trunk-or-treats: the blinding efficiency. From start to end, you're talking about 15 - 20 minutes tops, and the kids have all got a pretty good haul.

I think that's what we hated -- and feared -- the most. It would be more far more efficient for each family to just to run to the local shops and buy a few kilos of sweets for their own kids, if you think about it, but what's the point? Real community-building typically takes more than '15--20 minutes tops'. And I think we sensed that doing something easy that engenders greed in our children for the most/best treats may not be the best idea.

3 hours ago, Bernard Gui said:

I’ll guess that  there are some days you celebrate over there that we don’t celebrate over here?

Definitely, but we don't really try to celebrate them as a separate Church group, it seems to me. We have fantastic community celebrations that really bring people together, so we Saints pretty much just join in with our neighbours.We do have a ward Christmas party every year on a Saturday in December, and we have a ward barbecue breakfast on Easter Monday, but neither of those events competes with or replaces any community-based celebrations. And both would be roughly half-day events designed to foster deeper relationships.

Edited by Hamba Tuhan
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