Happy Halloween! The first time I was introduced to Halloween, was when I was an exchange student in Ticonderoga, NY 1988-89 and watched "Nightmare on Elm street" together with my host sister. While some of the more rowdy guys at the High School placed a decapitated cow's head on the town square, threw eggs into the principal's garden and decorated trees with toiletpaper, it was also fun to see kids dress up and go trick and treating. In Honolulu 2010, I played dress-up and went to a costume party at a club.
Now as a grown-up, I've come to realize that Halloween very much resembles the Swedish Easter tradition on Thursday evening before Good Friday. Then it was said that all witches were going for a meeting at Blåkulla, and therefor kids dressed up in skirts, wore a shawl around their hair, and painted themselves with freckles and big red cheeks. And of course carried a broom, while going door to door to ask for candy. I did too! But, what happened with this tradition? I haven't seen any for decades.
Most of this, has its root cause in the merchants wanting to create sales and use it as a marketing tool. I remember, having a bit of a debate about it in the 90's, when Valentine's became a thing to sell cards, candy and jewellery in Sweden. Black Friday sale, is another. We don't celebrate Thanksgiving at all in Sweden, but we have a Black Friday sale. I don't think that's right, even as I consider it to be my own personal favorite holiday to celebrate, based on my own relationship and experience of living in the United States though. Most Swedish people, have no clue why it's even called Black Friday. Or have watched Freddie Kruger. To me, there is huge difference between what we do on our own at home, and what the collective society is doing, without proper attribution.
How many traditions should a country import?
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