I want to start off by saying that I love Christmas. Christmas time is wonderful. I love my family, snow, Christmas trees and all of the beautiful things that come with the Holiday Season. That all being said, Halloween is my favorite holiday. Every year I start planning my costumes months in advance because I simply get way too excited. Halloween is a holiday that, to me, is stress-free. The ultimate goal is to dress up as whatever you want and express yourself! The fun of picking out a costume, getting ready, putting on a wig, makeup and whatever else you have, makes the day so much more fun.
You can put as much effort into it as you want, you can whip something up from the clothes in your closet, or go all out and get the most extravagant costume known to man, and nobody will bat an eye either way. Another note on why Halloween is the best is that your entire evening (pre-pandemic, of course) revolves around giving little kids, in adorable costumes, candy. When I was a kid, I sprung out of bed the morning of Halloween, just like most people do on Christmas.
The sheer excitement of going out with all of your best friends and knocking on people’s doors brought so much joy into my childhood. Once we got home, we would all dump our candies into piles and trade each other for our favorites. The leftover candy never got old, and I would look forward to the pieces my mom would sneak into my lunchbox. It seemed like we would eat it for days. We had costume contests at school, and for a few years, my mom and I even made my costumes ourselves. Those nights are some of my most cherished childhood memories.
I also love getting scared. Not actually getting scared but the scared you feel when you’re walking into a haunted house, clutching your friend’s arm for dear life as someone jumps out in front of you. The fall activities that come with Halloween are also, in my opinion, superior. Carving pumpkins, apple picking, watching the leaves change colors and Halloween decorations in the store; all of this is what makes Halloween so great. Another reason why Halloween is my favorite is the pop culture impact that Halloween has. Seeing what celebrities wore during Halloween essentially sets the scene for what comes next in the media. The iconic costumes become what everyone needs to beat the upcoming year, and the cycle continues.
When it comes down to it, I love Halloween because it is the one night a year you can be whoever you want to be. Whether that is someone you idolize or the Brawny Paper Towel Man, it doesn’t matter. It is a day for all creativity to be set free into the world, and I love every bit of it. While the holiday season is knocking on our door, I am fully prepared to give Halloween the spotlight for just a little while longer.