Happy Halloween? (Or that other day of the year)

(This column appears in today's editon of the Leyte-Samar Daily Express)

Hi there! It’s another weekend. And yes, the signs are all over the place, everyone (well, almost) is greeting everybody Happy Halloween! Whew! It’s that other day of the year again. Anyway, more on that later.

Let’s pan our sights to Afghanistan. So what about that land of the Taliban and the famous Bactrian gold? Forget about the casualties of ambushes and suicide bombings. Things must be normalizing there. How can I say that? Well, they are accusing Karzai of irregularities in the recent polls. And yes, there’s going to be another election! (Oops, smile, it’s a weekend!)

A year ago this week: Miriam was among those IN the news, thanks to the Senate hearings on the euro generals; and so was Bolante and the media scramble during his arrival at the NAIA. So what about them? Thanks to the events in the past 12 months, yup to include Mar and Korina’s wedding, it seems like those issues will remain just that – issues and have nowhere else to go. Well, es la vida.

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Mayor Mel Sarmiento is back from Japan. He planed in last Wednesday after attending the 2nd 3Rs Conference for Asian Local Government which was held in Fukuoka City, Japan last October 25 – 26, 2009.

The conference brought together officers of local governments with the aim to build stronger partnerships and promoting the importance of 3Rs activities in Asia.

Mayor Sarmiento’s traveling expenses were paid for by the organizers which included the Japan Environmental Sanitation Center (JESC), the Ministry of Environment, Fukuoka Prefectural Government, Fukuoka City Government and the Kitakyushu City Government.

Prior to his departure, Mayor Sarmiento informed the City Officials that no local funds are involved in his travel as the organizers have shouldered his traveling expenses. He further informed the city officials that his attendance in the said activity shall be greatly beneficial to the City Government as the program will have participation from other Asian countries who will discuss issues on the 3Rs; and that the opportunity to share with these representatives' problems related to the city's environment may open the door for possible sources of funding for the LGU's local environmental projects and logistical assistance for its other programs and initiatives.

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So, we are into that other day of the year again. Tomorrow a good number of kids, as well as young (and not-so-young) people will be partying again and giving the costume providers some livelihood. It’s the celebration which I was never inclined to be a part of. Let me give you once again what I wrote in my column around this time last year:

If you have been following my columns, you ought to know that Valentine’s is what I refer to as ‘that day of the year’; and Halloween is ‘that other day of the year’. So, what’s with Halloween? It happens every year when I see signage all over the place greeting everyone Happy Halloween! That’s one greeting which makes me feel uneasy. After all, this day of the year is something that has to do with the dead and / or the supernatural. After ranting about it for the past few years, I have decided that it’s time to share what I got from encarta.msn.com. Here I go:

Halloween is a holiday observed on the evening of October 31 in most areas of North America and in some areas of Western Europe. The holiday is symbolically associated with death and the supernatural. Halloween falls on the eve of All Saints’ Day, also known as Allhallows or Hallowmas, a holy day in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches. Originally a pagan festival of the dead, All Saints’ Day was established by the Catholic Church in the 9th century to honor Christian saints. All Souls’ Day, a holy day established by the Catholic Church in the 10th century, is also closely linked to Halloween. All Souls’ Day, on November 2, is observed to help purify the spirits of the dead.

Halloween is historically related to similar folk holidays celebrated in other countries. The Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday that coincides with All Souls’ Day, blends Roman Catholic and Native American traditions about the souls of the dead. On the Day of the Dead, Mexicans decorate their homes with playful imagery of animated human skeletons, leave offerings of food for wandering spirits, and tend the graves of their deceased relatives.

Most Halloween festivities are based on folk beliefs concerning supernatural forces and spirits of the dead. Halloween decorations typically feature imagery associated with supernatural beings such as witches, werewolves, vampires, and ghosts. Images thought to symbolize bad omens - such as black cats, bats, and spiders - are also commonly featured in Halloween decorations. The most celebrated Halloween decoration is the jack-o’-lantern, traditionally a hollowed-out pumpkin carved to resemble a grotesque face and illuminated by a candle placed inside. The jack-o’-lantern derives its name from a character in British folktales. According to these tales, the soul of a deceased person named Jack O’ Lantern was barred from both heaven and hell and was condemned to wander the earth with his lantern. Orange and black, colors associated with pumpkins and darkness respectively, figure prominently in most Halloween decorations.

Now, having taken all that, you still feel like partying?

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This is it for now. Have a nice weekend everyone! And yes, Happy Halloween everyone! (Well, if you can’t beat them, join them) Ciao!