Pumpkin
By Jenna Mitby
Last night, my mother remarked, “you guys really take Halloween seriously.”
Yes, yes we do.
I come from Madison, WI where Halloween is basically a state holiday. It’s the second largest party behind Mardi Gras in the US. So dressing up and getting into it is hardly difficult.
This year, my friends and I decided we’d buck the trend of “wearing as little as possible.” We dressed as trees, and slaved over our costumes to look utterly ridiculous. We didn’t show an inch of bare skin, and I thought we’d be the only ones. Yeah, right.
At the parties I attended, I didn’t see a single midriff. Not one. Don’t get me wrong, wandering the streets I did notice a handful of girls in the bare-all mode, but something has changed. It wasn’t more than two years ago that I was prancing around in a swimsuit in 40-degree weather. This year’s attire was still short and tight, but the midriff showing outfits that our generation learned from Britney Spears was nowhere to be found. So why were all the girls considerably more buttoned up than previous years?
It could be that our generation’s collective conscious is shifting. Your generation thinks we grew up too fast, and we probably did. But, we still have values. I shake my head at the 13 and 14-year-old girls that wear micro-skirts on a daily basis. We value our bodies more than we’ve been given credit. Yes, Britney influenced us to some degree, but maybe not at our core. Maybe, just maybe, we turned out to be a lot more traditional than you think. Now I look at girls that are scantily clad, and I wish they would put some clothes on because of the message they send about us. The lack of clothing is a symbol of desperation and lack of self-respect. I try to remind myself that I was like that, but the voice in my head responds with, “yeah, but those weren’t your reasons.”
Regardless, there is a transformation taking place, which in part, is a result of just growing up. However, I think something else is going on, some thing bigger. Whatever it is, I don’t have a clear answer, at least not yet. But, you can be sure I’ll come back with one.
Photo Credit: minipixel
I noticed too here in the northeast, that most of the Halloween Paraders were fully dressed this year. (absence of hooker Halloweeners) I don’t think that any huge revelation was realized or that any morals were considered.
I figured that it took a few years of freezing till the sweet young things realized it was just too darn cold.
Hmmm… I remember several scantily-clad girls at my Halloween party last year, but I celebrated this year in West Africa so can’t comment on the change until I get back. Personally, I’ve never worn skanky Halloween outfits, and I, too, take Halloween VERY seriously, ie. Pat from Saturday Night Live, a Hassidic Jew, AC Slater with mullet included … the list goes on. I’m looking forward to seeing next year if the rest of our gen has seen the magic of the totally unflattering costume, since I’m doubting it has anything to do with gaining values, ha.