 | | Things that go bump in the night were everywhere at Ain Aar's party for upper elementary and middle school students. | Our modern Halloween is often considered to be a relic of the Paleopagan Druid calendar. Some Celtic scholars believe October 31st was the eve of the Celtic new year. Celts,like many cultures, started every day at sunset of the night before with the dark half of the day serving as the beginning. November 1st was the beginning of the winter or dark half of the year. It was one of the important “fire festivals” with fire as a symbol of truth and beauty. It was believed to be a magical time when the dead could walk among the living and the veils between past, present and future were lifted.
Celtic society was highly structured and organized. To allow that order to be psychologically comfortable, the Celts knew that there had to be a time when order and structure were abolished, when chaos could reign. October 31st to November 2nd was such a holiday. Time was abolished for the three days of this festival and people did silly things, men dressed as women and women as men. Farmers’ gates were unhinged and left in ditches, peoples’ horses were moved to different fields, and children would knock on neighbors’ doors for food and treats.
 | | Mrs. Diana Kaaki's third grade class dressed up to make oral presentations of Halloween poetry. |
IC celebrated with poetry, theater, pumpkin carving and pumpkin pie, costumes, chocolate chip and other home baked cookies, cheese sandwiches, music and dancing all washed down with fruit punch.
 | | A group of Ras Beirut lower elementary teachers put on costumes to entertain students with their version of the Brothers Grimm story Rapunzel. |
 | | At the Halloween party in Ain Aar, some mysterious teachers dressed to be unrecognizable. |
 | | Hairy creatures and creatures unnamed and unknown appeared from the night. |
 | | A Ras Beirut Middle School Roman warrior, separated from his regiment, waits while skeletons adjust for special effects costumes. |
 | | There are at least two sides to every story . . . and some Halloween costumes. |
 | | Feeling witchy can be fun. |
© 2003 International College
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