BOO!

Today marks the day when the term "Holidays" gets started! Halloween is special just for the fact you can dress up however you want and nobody will judge you. People welcome kids and parents to come to their home and beg for candy. People pay to get scared by the "boogie" man and we love it! Oh, and you gotta' love scary movies! Nothing makes watching horror movies so fun than around Halloween! And how often do you get to make your house look completely tacky and horrific and it is acceptable?! That's why this time of year is so great! It brings that adrenaline to the surface that we all love to feel! Well, some of us. Anyway, what is the history of Halloween?

Over 2000 years ago the ancient Celts celebrated November 1 as their New Year. These people lived in what is now Ireland, France, Great Britain and believed that this was a time where other souls of the dead traveled into the other world. This celebration was to help the dead move along their journey and keep the living from being affected. This festival was called the Samhain. They would sacrifice animals, vegetables, and fruits to the dead and light bonfires in honor of the dead. Celts would wear animal heads and skins and attempted to tell each other's fortunes.

When the Roman Empire conquered the Celts, Christian missionaries and the Roman Catholic Officials then declared the ritual to be evil. They wanted it to be more Christian - oriented.  Pope Boniface IV proclaimed November 1 to become "All Saints Day" and from this came the term "Halloween".

And there is the basic history of Halloween! Nice to be educated once in awhile!

Happy Halloween!