Hallowmas

I read two 400 page books yesterday. Then I slept for 17 hours, total brain exhaustion.

Eddie, read the artical about your unit. Can you say, "Sensationalism?" But I understand, a reporter has to tell the story in a way that readers in Utah will actually read. Thanks for the link, cool story about the UAE deal.

Double O, don' have the pictures yet. I think ZZ is off on Thursday lets get up into that snow then.

ST, I didn't go to any of the sites you linked. I do not have high speed internet. But I may be going over to ZZ's mother's house today after I drop Liz at V.I. She has fast internet.

I took the following story from HistoryChannel.com and I have cut it down a lot, go to the link for the full story if you want to. Happy Halloween!

Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in).
The Celts celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the beginning of the time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. During the celebration, the Celts wore costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins, and attempted to tell each other's fortunes.

By A.D. 43, Romans had conquered the majority of Celtic territory. In the course of the four hundred years that they ruled the Celtic lands, two festivals of Roman origin were combined with the traditional Celtic celebration of Samhain. The first was Feralia, a day in late October when the Romans traditionally commemorated the passing of the dead. The second was a day to honor Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees. The symbol of Pomona is the apple and the incorporation of this celebration into Samhain probably explains the tradition of "bobbing" for apples.

In the seventh century, Pope Boniface IV designated November 1 All Saints' Day, a time to honor saints and martyrs. The pope was attempting to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a related, but church-sanctioned holiday. The celebration was also called All-hallows or All-hallowmas and the night before it began to be called All-hallows Eve and, eventually, Halloween. The church would make November 2 All Souls' Day, a day to honor the dead. It was celebrated similarly to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes as saints, angels, and devils.

Together, the three celebrations, the eve of All Saints', All Saints', and All Souls', were called Hallowmas.

Peace and Love,
Mungo