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| This year's Halloween decorations at home. |
Once again, I had the best of intentions to “share American
culture” by celebrating Halloween at school on the 31st with the kids. But the
week sort of got away from me. One of our staff members lost his eldest child
to a heart attack late last week and we went to visit his family to express our
condolences on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, a variety of visitors stopped by the
school for an hour or so in the afternoon to visit the school library. So by
Thursday, I had nothing prepared and it came and went like any other day.
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| A brief hailstorm was about the only thing interesting this Halloween. |
In some parts of South Africa (the first world parts),
Halloween is a thing the same as in the United States. When I was in Pretoria
earlier this month, I saw decorations with pumpkins, ghosts, and witches for
sale at CNA. And the guys that run the backpackers where I always stay said
that they will get a few trick-or-treaters in the neighborhood where they live.
In the village, not so much. Witchcraft and ghosts are not something the Zulus
think about in a light-hearted manner, so it is best to be careful with what is
introduced about new holidays. I figured I would mainly focus on the costumes
and candy. Since I can’t say, “I’ll do it next year,” instead I’ll say, “I’ll
leave a note for the next volunteer.”
Instead, I did my best to decorate my hut with a few things
sent from America. Otherwise, I enjoyed the afternoon hailstorm that rolled in
right after I arrived home from school. Such lovely weather here at times. Hope
everyone else enjoyed a candy-filled day!
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