Tuesday, November 1, 2016

In honor of Halloween... (Laurie)

I have a confession. Halloween is not one of my favorite holidays. I do enjoy candy, and dressing up can be fun, especially now that I get to pick out adorable costumes for my kids.

But I hate being scared. I can't stand horror movies or books, and I don't do well with haunted houses or any other situation where someone might lurk in the shadows waiting to take me by surprise.


I'm one of those people who's super jumpy. Someone once burst out laughing next to me in a movie theater because I jumped so obviously during a scary part. If my husband comes home earlier than usual and I'm listening to music or watching TV and don't hear him come in, he can give me a near heart attack. This weekend we went to a Halloween party, and when we got to the door someone opened it, yelling "Boo!" After seeing the look on my face, his next comment was, "Wow, you scare easy, don't you?"

Yes, yes I do.

In addition to being jumpy, my ability to think logically seems to fail me completely after dark. Seriously, it's pretty pathetic. I once woke my parents up at 3:00 a.m. because I was hearing strange noises. Turns out, it was the water softener.

I'm very fortunate that my husband has only traveled for work once in the six years of our marriage. While he was gone, I couldn't sleep unless I locked the door to our mud room, the door going downstairs, and our bedroom door. Do we live in a dangerous neighborhood? No. Did I have any reason to suspect someone would try to break into our house that particular night? Of course not. Could I convince myself out of these extra safety measures? No chance.

It gets even worse... I was a girl scout starting in grade school all the way through high school. Our troop went on these amazing camping trips that were basically big sleepovers. One of our traditions was our leaders would tell us scary stories as we sat around the campfire. They got really into it, a few times planning for someone to jump out and scare us at just the right time in their narrative. I don't remember the details of the stories, but the one that has stuck with me the most involved someone looking in the mirror at midnight and seeing something frightening instead of their reflection.

Many years have passed since these camping trips. I'm now an adult, with a law degree, a husband, and two kids. I don't even remember what the person saw in the mirror in that story from girl scouts, but do I avoid looking at my reflection whenever I get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night? Absolutely.

So there you have it. I'm a great, big scaredy-cat. But acceptance is an important step towards healing, right? And at least I can poke fun at myself for it :)


How about you? Do you enjoy horror books/movies or haunted houses? What are your favorite or least favorite aspects of Halloween?


Thanks for reading!
Laurie


Attribution:
Photos from pixabay.com

10 comments:

  1. I'm the same Laurie. Hate horror movies. I can handle some scary in books if I'm in control of my own imagination but sometimes it can be too much. Love candy and dressing up but hate Halloween too.
    And yes, I avoid looking into mirrors at night too. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks, Deanna! It's so nice to hear I'm not alone, especially about the mirrors thing :) I hope you enjoyed the fun, non-scary parts of Halloween yesterday! It's fun finding out how much we have in common :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm not easily scared, but I still don't enjoy horror - not the blood and guts kind. I don't mind a little spooky or mystery if it's well done. But what I really hate are the movies/stories that could BE true, like the ones involving demons or demon possessed people. I hate people hurting people. I hate movies like Braveheart or Misery. UGH.

    Unfortunately, I was one of the girl scouts who enjoyed scaring the other girls (especially the younger ones) through scary stories or skits. I made many-a girl cry and I enjoyed it. I do feel bad about that now. Kids do some really stupid things, huh? I'm glad I outgrew it.

    BTW, the person you see in the mirror is Bloody Mary ... however, she only appears when you say her name three times. ;) My grandchildren have taught me this. Ha!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for commenting, Pam! I know what you mean, the ones that could be true do tend to be the scariest - Misery was sooo creepy! I'm pretty sure we all have some regrettable moments from our childhoods, I know I do! But I am glad you outgrew it, otherwise you could've done a number on me at Realm Makers :) Bloody Mary sounds awful, no wonder I still avoid mirrors at night!

      Delete
  4. I don't like being scared either! I like the kid-friendly Halloween with cute costumes and candy. :) Very fun post, Laurie! Made me laugh and also relate. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment, Laura! I'm glad you enjoyed the post! I agree, cute costumes and candy are definitely the highlights of Halloween :)

      Delete
  5. I am a scaredy-cat as well! I once had a dream Gollum was chasing me around my house and I woke up my husband to walk me to the bathroom. Seriously. : ) I like cute costumes on Halloween, too, though.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yikes, that sounds like an awful dream! I've woken up my husband on a few occasions as well :) Thanks for the comment!

      Delete
  6. Great post!

    I cannot stand horror movies or books. They freak me out. I have a wild imagination, so I can convince myself of pretty much anything. For example, I can convince myself that someone is standing outside our back door waiting for me to open it when I let our dog in. Or, when I'm not wearing my glasses, I can convince myself that a black fuzzy is a bug, that is moving.

    I can't do scary things or horror movies, but I love the candy, dressing up, and excitement of Halloween other than that. I really like your post. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for commenting, Spruce! I think my wild imagination is part of my problem, too :) And I should've brought up the glasses thing, because it's such a good point! When you can't see clearly, you feel so much more vulnerable and your imagination can get so much more creative. I'm so glad you liked the post!

      Delete

Please note that your comment hasn't gone through unless you see the notice: "Your comment will be visible after approval." We apologize for any difficulties posting comments or delays in moderation.