By Jonathan Goodison-Orr ’18, Staff Writer

I will admit, writing this article took me longer than I expected. I spent three weeks researching Halloween history while also keeping myself up thinking of witty stories about modern trick-or-treating that would keep the reader entertained. And while all of this is well and good, I was missing a critical element to the story that I did not have until today. That element was the answer to the question; just how does Newark Academy celebrate Halloween? I know the tradition has changed from year to year, so to make this article relevant for 2013 I had to experience it for myself. I will admit that there were a few moments the day before Halloween that I feared I would be one of the few people that actually dressed up and that the fun of Halloween had been the latest fatality of the fast paced and serious atmosphere of NA culture. But, the moment I walked in the door on October 31^st, I knew I had feared for nothing. When I walked into the Middle School Morning Meeting I was struck by the fact that not only had people dressed up, but most of the middle school was clad in a Halloween themed outfit. I breathed a sigh of relief not just because of my fear of being out of place with my elaborate costume but that for one part of one day, Newark Academy found a way not to take itself so seriously and enjoy a silly tradition like Halloween.

Wind, rain, blizzards, hurricanes. It seems that every year there is some new incredible weather event that denies us our wish to dress up and harass our neighbors for candy.  Indeed, writing this article would have progressed a lot faster if I could have looked to my previous school years at NA to compare and contrast Halloween proceedings, but for that past two years that I have been at NA natural calamities have been determined to keep me from witnessing Halloween here firsthand. Sure, I could look at archive pictures or ask someone about previous Halloweens here, but even then I would only have half of the story. More so than other holidays here, Halloween is a true experience. An experience that I am only now getting to enjoy, thanks to mother nature. In 2011 they called it Snowtober. In 2012 they called it Sandy. Either way these events were unprecedented and caused substantial damage. But, this Halloween is a time for looking forward, and for recapturing the magic of October 31^st.

Indeed the magic of Halloween is no understatement, if you were to look at its long and complicated history. I don’t want to bore you with a Halloween history lesson, but I suppose this story would be incomplete without some backstory. In short, Halloween has become a great American tradition, despite only arriving on US Shores in the mid-19^th century with immigrants from Western Europe. And even then it took nearly a century after that for Halloween to evolve and begin to look like what it is today. The origins of the holiday of Halloween (Or ‘samhain’ in old Irish) date back to Celtic-speaking country’s in the middle ages and marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the ‘darker half’ of the year. This went on for years until the idea spread to Britain and the Church decided to ‘Christianize’ it, turning it into All Hallows eve, in preparation for All Saints day. The history of Halloween is long and complex following the Transformation from Samhain to All Hallows Eve, so I will try to summarize. The holiday fluxuated from being a very important event to easily forgotten tradition over the course of the Late Middle Ages, going under different names and following different customs in all of the countries it spread to, mainly in Western Europe. Eventually, Halloween became a largely forgotten holiday until it returned to the mainstream practice in the 19^th century.

Halloween, it seems so whimsical and simplistic. Dress up and live like someone else for a whole day, with the added bonus of being able to heckle neighbors for candy. But don’t just take my word for it, I spoke to 8^th grader Reid Christmann on the subject of Halloween’s morning meeting festivities, and he had this to say:  “I thought it was very fun and festive. I was glad we got to display our Halloween spirit especially since it has been cancelled for the past two years and frustrated many people. I think we should do this again because although it was small it was very entertaining.”

But not everyone is so thrilled with the Halloween event, as 8^th Grader Greg Gavenda had this to say: “It was strange for me, I had never done anything Halloween related in school and I also expected the Halloween parade to go around the school but it was just in the choral room, and because of this I didn’t really enjoy it.”

Finally, that story I’ve been promising you. Your doorbell rings. You go to answer the door to find Batman at the front of a long line of characters that have assembled at your door. The statue of liberty, Indiana Jones, a teenage mutant ninja turtle, a princess, Cookie monster and a pirate immediately follows him. All at once, as if rehearsed outside your home the strange assortment of characters declare, “trick-or-treat!”, a simple phrase basically meaning that if you don’t hand over the milky way bars and starbursts quickly, a unknown but devastating horror will fall upon your house (usually in the form of toilet paper). In the end, however you feel about Halloween, I hope Newark Academy can continue to celebrate this silly, fun holiday.