Wondering about Halloween

The modern celebration of Halloween (coming up tomorrow) can be a lot of fun, especially for the children.  They dress up in costumes and go "trick or treating" around their neighborhoods to get a loot of candy and fruit.  People have Halloween parties and bob for apples or try to bite hold of them tied to the ceiling by string.  This all seems to be innocent fun until you look at the what a holiday to honer Saints (All Hallows Day) turned into.  The original "Holy Evening" was observed on the evening before All Hallow's Day.  Although it was named as a Christian feast, the traditions owe more to the ancient Celtic festival Samhain.

It was suppose to be a dangerous and magical time when supernatural influences were at a peak, pagan gods walked among mortals, the spirits of the dead returned, and spirits of all kinds were at their most mischievous and destructive.  Large bonfires were lit to keep the spirits away along with sacrifices to appease them.  Sort of sounds like "trick or treat", right?  It seems even in modern times that we have forgotten to honer the Saints but rather to honer the devil and all that is evil and scary.  I am not going to go on, but even the bobbing for apples has it links back to the ancient times.  Seems it was a way to determine marriages.  We do not celebrate the holiday and since I live way back off the road and keep our outside lights off, we never get very many, if any, knocks on the door.  I do not open my gate, but the drive way divides and the other one will come to my house.  So, who knows, we may get tricked or treated.  Now, you all have a great day stock up for tomorrow night, you hear?