I’m a church-guy, so I’m supposed to say is that Halloween is a celebration of evil established by ancient druids who worshipped demons. It’s the high-unholy day of devil-worshippers, so participating is sacrilege.

If I believed that, that’s what I would say, but I don’t. As a kid, I looked forward to Halloween as the one day of the year that it was OK to dress-up and get free candy from nice neighbors. I masqueraded as Batman, a sailor, a cowboy, and a WWI flying ace.

At no time did I feel the urge to dance around Stonehenge and drink goats’ blood.

I knew kids in school who weren’t allowed to partake of cultural traditions because they were religious. I felt sorry for them as other kids talked about the fun of it all. If you want to drive your kids and others away from religion, preach that fun is evil and enforce strict rules. Those kids tend to overcompensate in adulthood by indulging in hedonism.

When my son Samuel was preparing to trick-or-treat at age 5, I asked him, “Aren’t you afraid if you go out there the vampires will get you?” He said, “Dad, vampires are pretend.” Kids know the difference between real and make-believe. Adults should too. God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.

My favorite adult Halloween tradition has been making costume props for my kids. I’ve made swords and shields and ninja turtle shells. The most elaborate was a Ghostbuster backpack and blaster. I studied several photographs, and used parts from old toys to get flashing lights and sound effects.

One year I made plywood tombstones to place in the yard, and my wife and I had a blast thinking up names to put on them. We buried Polly Esther, Phillip Screwdriver, Benson Hedges, and Disco. My favorite was Bob Upandown: he had 3 sets of lifespan dates.

None of those activities drew anyone in my family any closer to being a devil worshipper, than a nativity scene on the courthouse lawn forces anyone into being a Christian. I’m all for continuing harmless cultural traditions.

Fun is OK. Be a kid.

Mike VanOuse

Lafayette