Voting

I’m voting today! My mail-in ballot is about the size of a regular paperback. Say, Water For Elephants or The Power of Now. It’s filled with ideas, choices, and possibilities. Some are obvious and some require a closer reading. The choices presented seem to cover every aspect of life, no matter how mundane or personal. My say is counted along with everyone else’s. The result will determine the direction of the next four years. Laws will be made and taxes imposed. Everyone will be affected. That’s scary.

This brings to mind the close ties (or proximity) between Halloween and Election Day. Deliberate symbolism or non-partisan coincidence? Hard to say. Some candidates do resemble familiar frightening figures. Think back over the commercials you’ve recently seen. The ones that haunt you. Frankenstein? Dracula? The Mummy? That bumbler in the 4th or was it the 6th District? Hmm… how like Uncle Fester. Would you rather the elite Gomez Addams or the more middle-class Herman Munster?

The weather is turning, the shadows are falling, and goblins seem to be everywhere. Halloween, at its purest, is not exclusively about candy and the hoarding thereof or even about scaring the pants off us. Originally, it was a harvest festival. To countries around the world, it is a celebration of abundance. Or, not. Reaping what you sow?

We practice trick or treating. This choice is sometimes confusing. That’s why we have ballots. So we can keep it all straight. Vying with each other are devils, witches, skeletons, and those who would do Eeevil. Just glance down the list of candidates. I’m sure you can identify them.

Politicians are not necessarily evil. Perhaps, it’s just the system. Or, might it be something else? Something entangled in symbols of pagan hoopla? Is bobbing for apples as innocent as it appears? Could it be a euphemism for voting? What is it about masks? Why does so much in Washington take place in the dark? Would you trade your vote for a Butterfinger?

It may seem childish, but these guys are serious. Vote for Me! Or, else. That’s frightening.