Halloween is almost here. The kids can't wait. For Halloween night I am going to make my usual triple batch of chili, a big salad and garlic bread. People come and go all evening so it all just simmers away in the kitchen waiting to feed the passing goblin.
I usually do a special treat for dessert (not for the kids...they have more than enough sweets!) I haven't decided what to make this year...I can't decide whether to do a chocolate-toffee trifle or something with pumpkin...a pumpkin cheesecake perhaps. I better decide soon...time is running out.
I am learning to do less. I used to do tons of projects and now I am taking the time to concentrate on just a few. I do have some things which carry over from year to year (the Halloween Chili dinner for one and caramel popcorn balls for another) but I do like to add something new. It keeps it fun for me. I have a not-so-secret fear of life becoming ordinary. I like routine as much as the next person. I like to have the security of familiar people and things and wonderful traditions to look forward to. But I also love the idea that life is fluid and needs re-invention to keep us from taking it for granted. That is one reason I love travel so much. Seeing other places helps me to see my own in a new light. And so I balance new ideas and influences in our holidays with the traditions which our family counts on. The chili will be the same...but the dessert will be new. And if everyone loves it and wants it again next year I will just have to find something else to tweak.