I have a confession to make.....ok two. The first one is that I cheated on October. In the 365 days since the last one, I have bought decorations out of season (which I never do), I have drank Pumpkin Spice Lattes in August, I have worn my Halloween socks in March, May and July, and I watched some October movies during the summer and fall. Plus, if posting Pinterest snaps of fall leaves year round is a crime, then I may have just topped the FBI's most wanted list. I feel ashamed. But only a little. I just couldn't wait any longer.
My second confession is that I forgot that today was October. I have been busy all of September and parts of August doing October things and thinking about October and wishing for it to be here, that today kind of slipped my mind. Yesterday, October Eve, I just about killed myself getting the holiday décor up. I woke up today groggy and still thinking it was September. I wanted to badly for it to be October that when it actually happened, I just couldn't wrap my head around it. Go figure. In reality, I had my first October day on September 30th. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Happy first day of the best month ever, everyone. I have been looking forward to these October Thoughts since they ended last October. I have been jotting down ideas. I have been scheming and planning and dreaming big. Too big as it turns out. I had planned to write a short story for every day of this wonderful month, but that proved to be a bit too ambitious. So, at least once a week I will be presenting a short story. Maybe more if there proves to be time. It is October after all, and anything can happen.
The first thought of the month is going to be about decorations. I never know which though will push its way to the front, but this year it seemed pretty clear. If you know me at all, you know that I love to decorate. I never thought it was weird or over the top until I started really paying attention to other peoples houses. Now I'm not saying I go full on Clark Griswold on holidays, but things do get pretty festive. You can clearly tell what holiday we are celebrating around here just by looking at our front door. I would like to say that I don't do tacky décor, but I suppose that observation is in the eye of the beholder.
Some people think what I do is silly. Some (mostly retail clerks) think I have small children and am doing it for them, but I just like to feel festive. I like the idea of decorations, the flash, sparkle and whimsy. I like the memories associated with them. Two years ago on Halloween our house caught fire (non decoration related I might add). We lost pretty much everything in the house which included most of our decorations. I would have to read my Thoughts from last year to see how that loss affected me, but I am feeling it pretty keenly this year. I don't remember how many October boxes we used to have, I think it was in the 20's or 30's, but now we have 8. I know that is 8 more than most people, but for me it feels like a piece of me is missing.
Decorations are not just things to me, they are memories and stories. I can tell you where I got each decoration or who gave it to me. I can tell you where I have placed it, what I have done with it and various other memories associated with it. This year as I started going though the boxes I kept looking for things that are no longer there. I looked for the half melted pumpkin scarecrow guy that had always given me the heebie jeebies as a kid. He was lopsided and sorta sticky but he was a Halloween staple. I looked for my monster mugs that I spent a summer working for at a comic book warehouse. I unearthed them in a box in the back room one day and took them in lieu of pay. I looked for the screaming door mat that drove everyone but me crazy. I searched for my grandmas haunted house that she painted for me. It had a chip in one of the sides, one bulb socket didn't work anymore, but it reminded me so keenly of my childhood. That house was the one decoration that I fiercely claimed every year. It didn't go with the other haunted houses, it sat in the windowsill of my room and rotated colors all night long. I fell asleep listening to the bulbs transition and click. It bathed my room in blue, red and orange and it was my most favorite decoration.
Since the fire I have new favorites. Good friends have gifted me with the most amazing things. Instead of having childhood memories, I have new ones to build on. Instead of saying, Oh, I remember when we bought that at such and such a store. I can say, oh my, this one came from this person and then think back on the kindness and friendship that went into such a craft or purchase. These are my new favorites. And truth be told, it is kind of fun getting to buy new things. Sure, they might lack some of the kitsch from years past. And yes, the internet and second hand shops are great places to find things from yesteryear, but you never really can buy back your childhood. I know, I tried. Things just smell funny and don't feel the same.
Last night, as I waited for the clock to roll over into a new October, I sat in the dark and looked over my handiwork. No year is ever the same. Sure, some things have a specific spot, but not many. New decorations come in, new ideas pop into my head and a new decorating scheme is made. Every year I think to myself, wow, it can't possibly get any better than this year, and every year it does get better.
I love decorating. I love the look on peoples faces when they see what I have done. I love that some people think I'm crazy and some people think its wonderful. I love making something new and creating something whimsical for my household. I love the memories each piece evokes. I even love the melancholy of the missed decorations. It reminds me to enjoy things in the moment. We never know when that moment will change.
But really, isn't that October in a nutshell? The new year is getting long in the tooth. It is winding down and giving way to something shiny and newer. But it isn't just rolling over and letting the new take over, no, it is going out in a blaze of color. It is making its exit with the smells of the harvest and the taste of spice. October is the fun month that dares you to take a midnight walk under the stars, to wake up early and watch the fog creep back to its dark caverns, to dance around the fire, to jump in leaf piles and stomp in puddles. October is the last hurrah before the weather turns cold and the expectations of the bigger holidays loom. October is the party that everyone is invited too but so few accept the invitation.
That is my challenge to you this October. Live in the now. Embrace the whimsy. Crunch a leaf. Buy some crazy Halloween socks. Put plastic vampire teeth in your mouth and go to your dental appointment. Sip a pumpkin spice something on a cold morning. Get lost in a corn maze and not care a bit. But above all, open your eyes to the wonder of the best month of them all. You won't be disappointed, I promise.
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