Halloween in France has been something of a quiet affair these last several years. For years, you’d hardly notice it at all—maybe a plastic spider here, a wisp of fake cobweb there, but never anything that made you stop and think, “Oh, Halloween is here!” The shops didn’t even stock Halloween candy; if a few kids came by, it was usually on some random day near the end of October.
They’d show up on my doorstep, no costumes, sometimes barely knocking, standing there like little deer in the headlights. They looked as confused about trick-or-treating as I felt trying to offer them something for the holiday.
But this year, it was like Halloween fever took hold of the village. The first surprise hit when I went to the grocery store and saw actual bags of candy labeled for Halloween. This is a big deal! Not like the shelves bursting with mountains of candy you’d see in the U.S., but still, the mere presence of those bags was a revelation. I bought two, thinking it was cute, maybe a nice gesture to offer treats for the three or four kids who might pass by.
Then, around town, I noticed a few more decorations than usual—cobwebs, the odd skeleton here and there. “Hmm, Halloween is catching on!” I thought, wondering if we’d even get a handful of trick-or-treaters this time. But I wasn’t expecting what happened next.
Halloween night, 5 o’clock sharp, the doorbell rang. And there, standing on the other side, were a handful of kids in the most adorable little costumes. Not just bare-faced and bashful as in years past—they had real costumes, with hats, face paint, the works! And the trick-or-treaters just kept coming. One wave after another, all with excited grins and little buckets held out expectantly.
Instead of saying, “trick or treat,” They said,
“ Des bonbons ou des farces.”
Hearing those words oh how that made my evening. The Deers in the headlights are gone.
I had to ask Yann to rush out to the store for more candy, and then my son-in-law after him. We were running low every hour, and the kids just kept coming.
Somewhere around 7 o’clock I left my door opened and stood there all giddy, with Gabriel at my side. Yann blasted Halloween music!
By the time I’d finally closed the door, I stopped counting at 140 trick-or-treaters. Yes, 140 plus.
For years, I’d never thought much of Halloween here, but now, I can’t help but feel a spark of that old holiday magic. I will need to get a costume for myself next year.
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