Sisters, All Hallow’s Eve has become a night of frolic, where children where costumes and run amock!
-Winifred Sanderson from Hocus Pocus
I used to love the excuse every year to binge on bite-sized Snickers, but was mostly excited about getting creative with my costume and going bonkers with friends. It was as if Halloween was the one day where being goofy and wolfing down candy for dinner was totally acceptable and even, dare I say, appropriate.
This trip down memory lane sparks the thought that, if we allow ourselves the time and space to be our version of creative and weird, to indulge in whatever is “not allowed” or “bad” [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][i.e. tricks and treats], we might not need an excuse to save it all for one day out of the entire year.
Think of kids you may have known with strict rules or expectations from an outside source [or even themselves] who end up going batsh!t crazy at some point on their path to adulthood. If our inner Halloween silliness is oppressed, it bottles up like anger or resentment, and will eventually implode.
Not to say that we have to dress like Super Mario or gorge on sugar all the time: there are healthy ways to both indulge and express ourselves in a steady stream – neither a loose cannon nor a volcano on the verge of eruption.
I encourage us all to take a little bit of time every day to feel ourselves out, experiment with our creative side whether it’s drawing or puzzles or dancing around the kitchen to show tunes, and to not take ourselves too seriously as “grown ups.”
When we gift ourselves the opportunity to let out some steam in these ways, we might not feel the need to inhale processed junk food at lightening speed, and may also be able to let go of judgement if/when we do find ourselves surrounded by empty Reese’s wrappers [however that metaphor relates to you].
Practicing healthy habits isn’t limited to clean eating – it is just as much about listening to and nourishing our entire Self as a child or adult, sibling or relative, artist or techie, foodie or animal activist.
What does a daily, healthy expression of Halloween mean to you?[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
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