The Meaning of Fear

Much like Alice Cooper, Halloween is one of my favorite times of year. Every time it comes around I find myself possessing a new horror movie to watch. Over the weekend I watched “30 Days of Night,” “Alien,” and Rob Zombie’s remake of “Halloween.” Oh, and “The Evil Dead.”

For the beer lovers out there, this is definitely the best time of year to quaff down some seasonal pumpkin ale.

When I toured Shipyard Brewery in Portland, Maine, they offered two varieties of it: Pumpkin Head ale, which is quite sessionable without being too overpowering of a pumpkin flavor. The other was an Imperial Pumpkin, which packed such a sweet, dense wallop it might as well have been dessert. Spray some whipped cream on top and shake some nutmeg over it!

And if pumpkin’s not your thing, there’s still plenty of Oktoberfest around, and the winter ales are just starting to appear on the shelves. So if horror movies aren’t your thing, you can always just have a drink.

In some segments though, Halloween isn’t exactly high on priority lists.

I’ll never forget the pamphlet that someone sent to my house demanding that we not take part in the holiday. Don’t decorate your house, but instead just put a white candle in the window to show that we rejected the heathen feast of paganism outside.

If I ever meet the person who sent it, I’d thank them for their concern (probably while wearing a Deicide shirt). But then I’d ask them to consider: perhaps we ought to thank the good Lord for Halloween.

Why?

Fear is one of the biggest obstacles we’re likely to encounter in our growth as human beings. It impacts all of our relationships, personal and professional. We’ve all been there: you hate your job, but you’re afraid to jump ship to a new one for fear of burning bridges. You think someone in authority is wrong, but you’re afraid to challenge them on it. You admire that cute girl across the room/bar/charity event/concert, but you’re afraid she’s out of your league (or whatever excuse you’re telling yourself this week).

Halloween is one of those rare times when you get to look that fear in the face and take it head-on. It just so happens more people are doing it right along with you this time of year.

What do I mean by that?

Halloween fans paint, sculpt, and carve our representations of fear. The masks, the movies, the costumes, can mean whatever you want them to represent. On all other days, we cower before our fears, or just put them away. But on this day, we indulge in them. Experience them. And for God’s sake, laugh at them!

Done in the right spirit, celebrating Halloween makes you a better person. I doubt those who partake in “hipster Halloween” or “skanky Halloween” are getting this level of spiritual fulfillment.

This Halloween, let’s ask: what are you REALLY afraid of? And how will you kick its ass?

If anybody needs me, I’ll be chatting with Michael Myers….and if you’re in New York, I’ll see you at Friday’s Happy Hour at the Pony Bar!