The English Department at one of the primary schools I teach at had a Halloween celebration planned for the Friday before my much anticipated Fall Break, and I was a little hesitant to participate in the festivities. This was in large part due to the fact that I had to choose whether to go straight home and pack for my week long vacation, or help my colleagues plan and execute a a slightly watered down version of what I remember Halloween to be as a child. In the end, I did end up going, and I actually enjoyed myself. It had been a while since I had spent time with kids outside of a classroom, and it was nice to be in 'fun camp mode' again.
My favorite part of the entire event was the costumes, because if there had been a costume contest, a little boy called Zoli would have taken home the gold... or whatever it is the winners of costume contests get. He was dressed as the spirit of a dead Spanish soldier, which was original, but I didn't fully appreciate the ensemble until I heard about how dedicated he was to complete it. He wore a sheet with a hole cut for his head and a straw hat with a long feather. But this was no ordinary feather. It was still warm when he walked in because he and his friends had plucked it from a rooster they spent more than an hour chasing around the farm next to his house. I think the most dedication I ever showed to the execution of a Halloween costume was wearing incredibly high, incredibly uncomfortable heels. Zoli wins, and all I have to show for my dedication is sore feet. (Zoli is the boy on the bottom directly to the right of the pumpkin.)
