The first time I met Everett it was close to Halloween. I was walking the dogs and he came out of his house down the road and we introduced ourselves. As we talked he told me he didn't like Halloween. He explained that this was something he changed his mind about as he got older. I was a bit taken aback. Halloween had always been such a traditional holiday in my childhood and my teaching years.
He explained to me he didn't like the focus on evil. It is true that as the years went by Halloween did take on a life of its own with scary movies, scarier costumes, haunted houses, and Scarywood. I didn't think too much about it until the next Halloween rolled around and we were married. I made a shift in my seasonal decor from jack-o-lanterns and witches to harvest pumpkins and scarecrows for Everett. I put on my Halloween costume when I arrived at school.
Because of the location of our house we never got trick-or-treaters. Then we moved back to my hometown and on the street where I grew up, the street every house handed out candy on Halloween. The first year we just went out during the trick-or-treat time. Another year we had dinner in the SheShed. Everett then decided it didn't bother him as much so I handed out candy. Not last year.
Last Halloween was the last day Everett was ever home. Little did I know when I drove him to the ER that he would not return. That day he was taken by ambulance to Kootenai Health for a serious infection. That day a year ago started a journey of illness, isolation in the Covid Unit (even though he was asymptomatic), and further long days in the hospital.
Today Halloween will return to 514. I won't wear a costume or cover the outside of the house with creepy decorations. I will just greet the costumed children, smile, and hand out candy like my days of childhood. I think Everett would now say, "Not too shabby"
