The Witching Hour

"From ghoulies and ghosties and long leggety beasties and things that go bump in the night, Good Lord, deliver us!" --Scottish saying

Let's kick off our spooky celebration with Merriam-Webster's word of the day:

wraith (noun) 1 a : the exact likeness of a living person seen usually just before death as an apparition b : ghost, specter
2 : an insubstantial form or semblance : shadow
3 : a barely visible gaseous or vaporous column

And did you know: If you see your own double, you're in trouble, at least if you believe old superstitions. The belief that a ghostly twin's appearance portends death is one common to many cultures. In German folklore, such apparitions were called "doppelgängers" (literally, "double goers"); in Scottish lore, they were "wraiths." The exact origin of the word "wraith" is misty, however. Etymologists can only trace it back to its first known use in an English text, which was a 1513 classical translation by Scotsman Gawin Douglas (he used it to name apparitions of both the dead and the living). In current English, "wraith" has taken on additional, less spooky, meanings as well; it now often suggests a shadowy—but not necessarily scary—lack of substance.

A Witch's Brew
(a few more definitions)
witch hazel (noun) 1 : any of a genus of shrubs or small trees with slender-petaled yellow flowers borne in late fall or early spring; especially : one of eastern North America that blooms in the fall 2 : an alcoholic solution of a distillate of the bark of a witch hazel used as a soothing and mildly astringent lotion.
witch (noun) 1 : one that is credited with usually malignant supernatural powers; especially a woman practicing usually black witchcraft often with the aid of a devil or familiar.
familiar (noun) 3 : a spirit often embodied in an animal and held to attend and serve or guard a person.
warlock (noun) 1 : a man practicing the black arts.

"A Thorn or a Burr
She takes for a Spurre:
With a lash of a Bramble she rides now,
Through Brakes and through Bryars,
O're Ditches, and Mires,
She followes the Spirit that guides now."
--Robert Herrick (1591-1674)

One of the few plays I've read, The Crucible, is also a really good movie with Daniel Day-Lewis. It's a goody! (That was a bit of a pun for those who know the story.) Check out this site for information abou the Salem witch trials, provided by the good people of Salem themselves.

Shakespeare Must've Thrown a Great Halloween Party

"'Tis now the very witching time of night, When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out Contagion to this world." (Hamlet, III, 2)

"Fillet of a fenny snake, In the caldron boil and bake; Eye of newt, and toe of frog, Wool of bat, and tongue of dog, Adder's fork, and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg, and owlet's wing, For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.
ALL. Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble."
(Macbeth, IV, 1)

"By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes." (Macbeth, IV, 1)

"At whose approach, ghosts, wandering here and there, Troop home to churchyards: damned spirits all, That in crossways and floods have burial, Already to their wormy beds are gone."
(A Midsummer Night's Dream, III, 2)

"And thus I clothe my naked villany With odd old ends stol’n forth of Holy Writ, And seem a saint when most I play the devil."(Richard III, I, 3)

And Now for a Brief History Lesson
Sponsored by Wikipedia:
Samhain (pronounced "sow-in") is the winter season of the ancient Celts. According to the Celtic calendar, the year was divided into four quarters: Samhain (winter), Imbolc (spring), Beltane (summer), and Lughnasadh (autumn). The Celtic year began in November with Samhain.

The name Halloween derives from the older form Hallowe'en, a contraction of "All Hallow's Eve," so called as it is the day before the Cathloic All Saints holy day, which used to be called "All Hallows." The Christians subverted the recognition of Samhain to honor the saints, as All Saint's Day on November 1st and named October 31stas All Hallow's Eve.

Trick-or-Treating originated in the British Isles. In Scotland and the North of England, it is called "guising." It was once believed that on Hallowe'en, the spiritual world was at its strongest point of the year. It was commonly believed that supernatural beings, usually malevolent, walked free on Earth for this night. People would wear masks when they went outside, in an attempt to disguise themselves as spirits so they could travel unharmed.

Some Spooky Links
Everything you always wanted to know about Pumpkins from the History Channel's History of Halloween.

A history of Halloween and other fun stuff from our friends at Ben & Jerry's.

A tribute to Edgar Allan Poe from the folks at Victorian Halloween.

What Is UNICEF Anyway?
UNICEF stands for United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund. From their website: "After World War II, European children face famine and disease. UNICEF [was] created in December 1946 by the United Nations to provide food, clothing, and health care to them." Today UNICEF promotes girls' education, work to get all children immunized, and fight against the spread of HIV/AIDS.

Since 1950 American children have particpated in the Trick or Treat for UNICEF program to collect donation while collecting cavities. But in an interesting twist of events, religious and conservative groups (includeing the Vatican) have taken to withholding their donations to UNICEF because the organization supports birth control and abortion.

Screen Screams
Be sure to check out these thrilling tales of witches, ghosts, and other supernatural phenomena:

*Something Wicked This Way Comes
*Witches
*Watcher in the Woods
*Legend of Sleepy Hollow
*Darby O'Gill and the Little People
*The Witches of Eastwick
*Hocus Pocus
*The Craft
*The Others
*Ghostbusters

And last, but not least, The History of Candy Corn... my favorite Halloween candy!

Happy Halloween!