Just the mention of the triduum of Allhallowtide probably has you scratching your head, but that is what is coming up beginning tomorrow. We first have Halloween, then All Saints' Day, and finally All Souls' Day. This started out as a Christian observance. These days, while there is certainly still a Christian celebration of All Saints, the rest has become very commercialized and secularized.
Remembering the dead, especially our own family members, is a wonderful part of the three day observance. This particularly gets attention on the last of the three days. Many Catholic and Anglican churches will have special masses on All Souls' Day to pray for the departed.
Halloween gets the most attention of course. In some places, it is practically an actual holiday! People dress up in costumes and attend parties and it isn't just for the kids anymore! Oh and don't be surprised to find traditional foods like potato pancakes, caramel apples, colcannon (a traditional Irish dish made of mashed potatoes and kale), cider, popcorn balls, and soul cakes. There are numerous Halloween customs and trick-or-treating (going door to door in costume and asking for candy "treats") is probably the best known.
Of course a worldwide pandemic does change a lot. I hear a lot of talk about more zoom Thanksgivings. We can do the same thing for Halloween. I'm hearing though that trick-or-treating is safe this year. Actually we can give those costumes a lot of attention using the internet.
I could easily go on and on about the many associated traditions for these upcoming three days, but why not look into it a bit yourself? Oh and whatever you do, be safe and have a positive experience.
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