Maddie’s Monday Musings #2 - 16th October 2023
Hey there, pumpkin! 🎃
In the countdown to Halloween, don't miss out on a whimsical trip to your nearest pumpkin patch and help support local farmers in your area (while also taking some aesthetically pleasing autumn pictures for your Insta grid). Now is the perfect time to go pumpkin picking as it's only going to start getting busier and busier as we near closer to All Hallows' Eve. Going now also ensures that you get best pick of the pumpkins, without walking through fields upon fields to find them!
This past weekend I visited Sompting Pumpkins in West Sussex, UK and it truly is a magical experience being able to see so many pumpkins, like orange polka dots across a massive expanse of field. And I got my first Casper pumpkin! (A white one). 🎃🤍🎃
Have you been to any pumpkin patches yet? Let me know on Instagram or X (Twitter). 💬
13 Fun Halloween Movies 🎬
Nothing quite gets you into the festive spirit of Halloween more than binge-ing your favourite spooky movies. Where haunting tales come to life, our deepest darkest fears are explored, and we come face-to-face with ghoulish ghosts and monstrous beings... 👻
Halloween movies, in comparison to Horror movies, are much more adventurous and comedic which makes them a lighter watch for everyone to enjoy. And (in my opinion) it's impossible not to fall in love with the charming gothic aesthetic & eccentric personalities of spooky Halloween characters.
Below is a list of fun Halloween movies I'd recommend watching this October:
- Beetlejuice
- Hocus Pocus
- Sleepy Hollow
- Trick ’r Treat
- Corpse Bride
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
- Victor Frankenstein
- Renfield
- Haunted Mansion (2023)
- Coraline
- Hotel Transylvania
- The Addams Family
- The Rocky Horror Picture Show
The Folklore of Halloween Pumpkins 🎃
Did you know that Jack O’Lanterns originate from Irish folklore? 🍀
The tale of Stingy Jack, a miserable old drunkard who loved to play tricks, tells us of one fateful night when he decided to play a trick on the Devil himself...
He invited the Devil for a drink, but true to his name, Stingy Jack didn’t want to pay. Therefore he tricked the Devil into turning himself into a coin which he then used to pay for the drinks. 🍻🪙🍻
A year later, Stingy Jack tricked the Devil again by taunting him to climb up a tree to pick a piece of fruit. He then carved a cross into the tree meaning that the Devil could not get back down. Stingy Jack used the opportunity to bargain with the Devil that he would leave him alone and, when he eventually died, the Devil would not damn his trickster soul to Hell 🔥
And so when Stingy Jack eventually met his end, he went into a panic as Heaven wouldn't allow him to pass through the pearly white gates due to how nasty and deceitful he was in life. And because of his deal with the Devil, he wasn’t permitted entry into Hell either. The Devil, smirking with the serendipity of the situation, gave Jack a burning coal to light his way, and sent him out to forever wander the Earth in the darkness of night 🔥🪨🔥
In the original tale, Stingy Jack placed the burning coal inside a hollowed-out Turnip. But when the Jack O’Lantern tradition was brought over to America, pumpkins (which were fruit native to America) were hollowed out and used instead. Frightful faces are carved into them to scare Stingy Jack and any other wandering evil spirits away ✨🎃✨
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Currently residing in West Sussex, Maddie is a 26 y/o blogger and illustrator with a passion for mythology, legends, fairytales & folklore. You'll regularly find her escaping into fantasy books, films, TV, and games.