You may have noticed that I end most of my posts with the phrase, “Stay spooky, my friends”.
I have no real idea where I got that from. I said it once in an Instagram post and I liked the way it sounded, so I stuck with it. I’m probably not the first to say it, and probably won’t be the last. We all want to sound like the Halloween version of The Most Interesting Man in the World sometimes, right?
But the more I’ve thought about it, the more I realize just how important those words are, to me and to others like myself.
We are facing an uncertain time in the world right now. Trust me, I know how easy it is to get sucked up into all the panic. I deal with many anxiety issues on a daily basis. I work in a grocery store, which is basically ground zero in these times. I have a significant amount of loved ones that are at a higher risk for the virus. To say I haven’t been worried would be a lie.
It’s easy to shut out the things that make us happy when we’re afraid. It’s easy to say, “I have too much on my mind to think about ____ right now”. But I have learned that the key to getting through all the hardest times in my life has been, quite simply, to stay spooky.
About a year ago, I was in a very bad place mentally. My entire life had been upheaved, I was dealing with new situations and more stress and responsibilities than I had ever been used to before. I fell into a depression without even realizing that it was happening. I stopped engaging in my hobbies. My bedroom in my new home was a blah, disorganized, undecorated mess. I wouldn’t treat myself to anything. I basically stopped allowing myself any happiness, any life outside of my own warped mind.
One day I decided, I don’t remember how, to go and pull some things out of my storage unit. I spent a day decorating, and I realized, after I had surrounded myself with a little bit of Halloween, that I felt more myself, more at home, and happier than I thought I could ever be again. It was like a switch flipped inside my head and I thought, “Why didn’t I see it before?!”. Halloween has always been what has brought me life and joy. And keeping it near me, all year round, engaging in all sorts of things relating to it no matter what the calendar says, has been the key to beating the depression that came with a major life transition and getting back to my truest, best self.
I’ve seen around on social media that some neighborhoods have been putting their Christmas lights back up as a way to provide hope and light in these difficult circumstances. Obviously, Christmas isn’t my favorite, but I think it’s a wonderful idea. I know there are people out there who love Christmas, and other holidays too, the way that I love Halloween. It actually breaks my heart to think about the people who love St. Patrick’s Day or Easter who will be missing out this year. I lost Halloween in 2012 due to Hurricane Sandy, and it made things seem so dark and desolate. But then, like now, I clung to the promise of a new autumn, and fought even harder to make it feel like Halloween every day.
I suppose the point I’m trying to make here is, no matter what happens in the world, don’t lose sight of the things that make you happiest. Celebrate your favorite things no matter what the calendar tells you, or what the circumstances of the outside world are. Take pictures. Write stories. Light a scented candle (or be like me and buy the leftover pumpkin scented Glade Plug-Ins that your job just pulled out of the back room) and watch a movie that makes you feel like it’s October. Escape into the things that make you happiest and you’ll be surprised what you can get through.
And, as always, stay spooky, my friends.
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