Halloween Around the World

Halloween in Ireland

Ireland is said to be the birthplace of Halloween. Thousands of years ago there was a small clan of farmers known as the Celts. They believed that the sun helped their crops flourish, so with the autumn coming they knew the sun would begin to disappear. They would lead their livestock home from summer pastures to the winter shelters. Worried that the sun would not reappear, they began holding a festival on October 31^st to ensure the sun would return. Samhain Eve (All Hallows Eve) was a time when the veil between the two worlds of the living and the dead grew thinner, and ghosts are believed to have ventured into peoples homes. Today, the celebration marks the end of summer and the beginning of the winter months. Schools are closed for a week called Halloween break. On Halloween night, adults and children dress up specifically as creatures from the underworld (i.e. ghosts, witches, goblins, zombies), light bonfires, and watch fireworks. The children walk around knocking on doors to receive fruit, nuts, and sweets for the festival. Sometimes neighbors will sprinkle salt on the children because it is an ancient Irish belief that salt will protect against evil spirits. Houses are decorated with pumpkins, turnips, and other scary decorations. Traditionally there is a Halloween cake that is fruit bread, and everyone is to eat a slice. Each cake is supposed to be made with a rag, a ring, and a coin. If you get a piece of cake with the rag inside that means your financial future is doubtful, if you get the coin you can look forward to a prosperous year, and if you get the ring is it a sign of impending romance or continued happiness. As you can see, Halloween is celebrated completely different in Ireland than it is in America. The culture of Halloween is treasured in Ireland; it is a sacred holiday that is celebrated based on traditions. Here in America, Halloween is a sorry excuse of a “holiday” where people dress is a wide variety of costumes related back to zero traditions. The culture of Halloween is very commercial in America and is not really celebrated with meaning or traditional elements. ~ Chelsea    

Halloween in Japan

Japan does not celebrate a western-style Halloween. Instead, the Japanese celebrate the “Obon Festival” (also known as “Matsure or “Urabone”), which is similar to traditional Halloween festivities because it is dedicated to the spirits of ancestors. It takes place during July or August and special foods are prepared and red lanterns are hung everywhere. The festival lasts for three days; however its starting date varies within the different regions of Japan. Lit candles are placed into lanterns, which are then set afloat on rivers and seas. During this time, a fire is lit every night to show the ancestors where their families might be found. In Japan, the “Obon” festival is one of the two main occasions when the dead are believed to return to their birthplaces. On the 13^th, an alter is set up with food offerings, and “welcoming fires” are set in front of the house to guide and welcome returning spirits. On the evening of the 15^th “send of fires” are lit, and the spirits return to their graves. In the city, festivals are usually held during “Obon” to celebrate. ~ Ashley

Source: Google Images & pumpkinpatchesandmore.org

Halloween Mexico, Latin America, Spain 

        Among Spanish-speaking nations, Halloween is known as "El Dia de los Muertos." It is a joyous and happy holiday...a time to remember friends and family who have past away. Officially commemorated on November 2, the three-day celebration actually begins on the evening of October 31. 

Designed to honor the dead who are believed to return to their homes on Halloween, many families construct an altar in their home and decorate it with candy, flowers, photographs, fresh water and samples of the deceased's favorite foods and drinks.

The grave is then adorned with flowers, wreaths or paper streamers. On November 2, relatives gather at the gravesite to picnic and reminisce. Some of these gatherings may even include tequila and a mariachi band although American Halloween customs are gradually taking over this celebration.

In Mexico during the autumn, countless numbers of Monarch butterflies return to the shelter of Mexico's oyamel fir trees. It was the belief of the Aztecs that these butterflies bore the spirits of dead ancestors. ~Brenda   

Feliz Dia de los Muertos!

http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/The-312/October-2011/Contemporary-Artists-Reinvent-Traditional-Altars-at-Pullman-Dia-de-los-Muertos-Altar-Walk/  

http://www.skullspiration.com/skull-sugar-meaning/


Halloween in the UK

Many of the Halloween traditions originated in the US and then circulated to the UK. However, Halloween has its origins in pagan festivals in England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. Festivities include: parties where everyone is in costume, watching horror movies at home, or watching a film on the big screen in a cemetery. Children go trick or treating and if people do not give out candy then they play practical jokes on each other. Halloween is also not considered a bank holiday and so businesses, schools, stores, etc. are all open and even promote Halloween.

People believe that around this time of the year, spirits of the dead come “alive” and walk among the living. It is believed that one must dress in costume so as not to be harmed by the spirits, which is most likely where the costumes originated from. The symbols used for Halloween are the same as in the US—black and orange, pumpkin lanterns, witches, wizards, ghosts, spirits, horror film characters, black cats, bats, and spiders.

 In the UK, Halloween is one of the many names—All Hallows Eve, the day before All Saints’ Day, Nut-crack Night, Trump-the-door Night, Apple and Candle Night and Halloween Bob Apple Night or Duck Apple Night—the British use for this “celebration”.  The last name comes from the very popular game of ‘apple bobbing’ or ‘apple ducking’, which is when they fill a bucket with water and apples and then people have to get the apples with their mouth while their hands are tied behind their back. This game is a reminder of how women who were accused of being witches in the middle ages were tried. The women would be tied to a chair and repeatedly ducked into a river or pond and if they would drown they were considered innocent, whereas if they lived they were thought to be witches and burned at the stake. This game was also se to predict young people’s life time partners and would assure if they were in all faithful or not. ~ Sandy

http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/uk/halloween

A New Look at Beauty, Aging and Power

"It seems to me that the years between eighteen 

and twenty-eight are the hardest, psychologically. 

It’s then you realize this is make or break, you no 

longer have the excuse of youth, and it is time to 

become an adult – but you are not ready." Helen Mirren.

I am currently 19. I'm at the stage of becoming an adult and to be honest, it's terrifying. I don't want to grow up but I know that it is part of life and something we all must go through. I tend to think a lot about the future and I know I shouldn't but I sometimes freak out. I cannot imagine a world where I am the parent and my parents are no longer here. I fear losing my loved ones and  I fear aging. Aging means facing mortality. I know we all die one day but for now I live in denial. I know I do not fully comprehend the "beauty of aging" and I hope that I can appreciate it when I am in my 30's. We age every second, it is part of being human. And I hope I can live my life to the fullest and not live in fear. ~ Sandy

I think we are all too young to understand the power of aging beauty. However, I am sure we have our own ideas along with the ideas of our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and friends who all have there own ideas about getting older and the negative connotations that come with age. Within the past five years or so I have become aware of my mothers personal various images and ideas that she has about getting older. On the verge of a very big birthday, my mother is avoiding her aging ways by stressing to me the importance of being young and enjoying life. She is baffled by the constant need to dye her gray hairs, address her under-eye creases and be physically fit. Although I believe she is beautiful just the way she is, we all have our own insecurities and aging has become a constant my mother would rather avoid. While we all may fear aging, it is in fact inevitable. Looking at the beauty of aging and the power it holds might help women feel more comfortable and confident about aging. I think the quote, “We have to be able to grow up. Our wrinkles are our medals of the passage of life. They are what we have been through and who we want to be,” helps to look at aging in a more beautiful poetic light. ~ Chelsea     

Different societies and cultures have strong influences on our thoughts and ideas of beauty. For now, I don’t think any of us should have that fear of growing old since we’re all still relatively young. I mean maybe it will hit some of us later in life, but I agree with the idea that you’re as young as you feel. I have older relatives who all constantly dye their grey hairs or are engaged in social media outlets like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. They want to keep up with what’s happening and fit into a different generation so they wouldn’t feel so old. Aging scares so many of us because of the physical changes we see, but at the same time aging can be seen as a good thing because with age comes wisdom and experience. I think to avoid the fear of physically aging you really have to take care of yourself in the early years by watching what you eat, exercising, and just staying healthy. ~ Ashley

*YouTube Clip*

There is absolutely nothing wrong with aging. Personally, I see there is beauty with aging. There are women that age well than others but in the end everyone is going through the same road. Sometimes I do worry about myself aging and getting all the effects with it. I don’t think I would focus on getting wrinkles off my face or getting any surgical procedures. The only thing that I would probably do is continue to die my hair but that’s about it. Being a female is already hard as it is and the social media around us pressures us to the feeling of looking a specific way. 

My mom is going through the phase were she is noticing her aging and she feels like she is getting “old.” She is currently 42 yeas old and I do not see her as getting old. There are times were I am out with her and people confuse her for my sister. In our own eyes, we feel like we have so many flaws and attributes we would like to change on ourselves. The perspectives of other people might be

 different, while you see the flaws they

 see you as perfection. ~Brenda

Health to Pay: Pressures Push Jockeys to Extremes for Weight Loss

Horseracing’s dirty little secret push jockeys to starve, sweat, and purge, then go out and risk their lives on the racetrack. Jockeys violate their bodies in order to achieve proper dress in the workplace. Jockeys use several techniques to reduce their weight before a big race—most of these techniques are harmful and unhealthy for the body. Specific techniques include “flipping” meals by sticking a finger down his throat forcing himself to vomit, and sweating away the weight in a “hot box”. Flipping is conceivably the most controversial practices that neither jockeys or management is even willing to discuss. To be a jockey, there is a certain weight limit required, however maintaining these extreme weight requirements should be done in a civil healthier manner. The fact of the matter is that the racing environment encourages drastic techniques such as “flipping” and “hot boxing,” even management teams at the racetrack accommodate the practice of flipping, by providing jockeys with a special bowl. There are several careers that condone extreme measures to make their weight. Jockeys, models, wrestlers, body builders, and pageant girls are a few professions that result in extreme weight loss techniques. Consequently these extreme measures are harmful to the body and its organs, further down the line these extreme measures could have life-threating consequences. ~ Chelsea 

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/23/sport/jockey-diets-weight-horse-racing/

Not many people know what goes behind the scenes when it comes to horseracing. All sports have certain standards for their athletes, but none are as strict as the weight loss requirement for jockeys. In reality, “jockeys go to extreme lengths to stunt their growth – sometimes down to the size of a pre-pubescent child”. In this industry, a few extra pounds can take you out of a multi-million dollar race, so jockeys are put under enormous amounts of pressure to meet miniature weight requirements. In the U.S. the minimum riding weight is 53kg (116 lbs), the average weight of a 14 to 15-year-old boy. One of the ways desperate riders try to lose a pound or two before a competition is by purging themselves in something that’s called a “heaving bowl”. They are installed in U.S. racetracks for vomiting, or “flipping”, and it is one of the most extreme dieting methods used by professional jockeys.  This practice is so extreme that there have been deaths caused by it. Jockeys would “flip” probably around 10-15 times a day to reach the desired weight limit. Jockeys push themselves past their limits to stay on top of their game. ~ Ashley

Source(s): http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/23/sport/jockey-diets-weight-horse-racing/

http://www.wave3.com/Global/story.asp?S=4121499

There are times were the passion of being a fitted athlete can ruin your health.

Have you ever felt like the need to fit in society’s ideals? You would do the impossible just to feel part of something?

Randy Romero shared his story and confessed how he would stick his finger down his throat to lose weight and become a 70lbs jockey. The world’s top money-winning jockey, Chris McCarron stated that jockeys need to understand the damage they are creating in their bodies by practicing extreme weight loss techniques.

It is important to keep awareness that your health is the most important. I will always remember my grandparent’s advice, what ever you do now or consume will come back and bite you later. ~Brenda