Free Range Free Chat

Halloween on a Monday? Seems like it should fall on a weekend, the better to beg from neighbors, my dear. … 🎃 It is also the Day of the Dead or Dios de los Muertos, or it will be tonight and for the next two days.

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama hand out Halloween treats to local children and children of military families are trick-or treating at the South Portico of the White House, Oct. 31, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth.

Trick or Treat!


The Day of the Dead:

The Day of the Dead might sound like a solemn affair, but Mexico’s famous holiday is actually a lively commemoration of the departed.

Day of the Dead Altar for commemorating and communing with those who have died.

The nationwide festivities, which include a massive parade in Mexico City, typically begin the night of Oct. 31 with families sitting vigil at grave sites. Mexican tradition holds that on Nov. 1 and 2, the dead awaken to reconnect and celebrate with their living family and friends. typically begin the night of Oct. 31 with families sitting vigil at grave sites. Mexican tradition holds that on Nov. 1 and 2, the dead awaken to reconnect and celebrate with their living family and friends.

Day of the Dead Foods:

Sugar Skulls
Pan de Muerto
Tamales

This is Free Range, our free chat for Mondays, a place to talk, to laugh, to rant, to share, to post your topics of interest, those issues not addressed in our other posts. Today is special, a day devoted to the dead, the ghosts, the ghouls and those who travel between those dimensions. And WHAT a relief! Those living people, our politicians and celebrities, our talking heads and Social Media have been far more unpleasant lately than any spirit or ghost.

Feel free to share your ideas and thoughts, and let’s celebrate today’s holiday since it reminds us that yes, at some point, this malarkey ends (to use Biden’s word). Death and taxes, people, and on that cheery and fear-y note (and isn’t Halloween JUST that? Cheery and fear-y?) Let’s chat….🎃💀😄