Pumpkin Carving? Or.....?
Our home is just down the road from a Pumpkin Lot. I drove past the lot this afternoon and how neat it was to see kids out there searching just as hard as they could, for their perfect pumpkin.
When I was young, we always had a carved Jack-O'-lantern for Halloween Night. My mom would place a candle in it for us to burn that night, and it would burn all night long or until the candle burned out. We always set it on the top of the steps coming up onto the porch. Back then, the candles were the tall, slender candles and I can remember how mother would melt some of the candle in the bottom of the pumpkin, in order to make a "wax" well for the tall candle to secure it.
I sure wish we had pictures of some of the pumpkins we carved!! Pitiful they were! You know the normal triangle eyes and nose that we all used back then...that is what we always carved out! AND...those choppy teeth!
Pumpkin carving is a fun and creative way to celebrate Halloween or even the Fall Season. In my family, it was always a tradition and you know how traditions are.....they carry on from one generation to the next.
We actually called them "Jack-O'-lanterns" way back then. There is an old folklore about a man named Stingy Jack. Jack tricked the devil and was cursed to wander the earth with only a hollowed out turnip containing an ember from Hell to light his way. Over time, pumpkins became the preferred choice for carving. People began carving pumpkins by making scary faces and by placing a light inside of the pumpkin, in order to scare Stingy Jack away.
There are numerous stories about Stingy Jack and although they pretty much deliver the same message, some of the stories are more detailed and a bit more scary.
During the pumpkin season, there are all kinds of carved pumpkins. Spooky, Ghost, Fun, Creative, cute, animals, human looking, and even many cartoon created pumpkins.
AND...did you know that Pumpkin carving Contest are huge events these days? Well, these contest took place back in the older days too! lol....
So...... does your family relate to these beautiful pieces of art, as Carved Pumpkins 🎃OR Jack-O'-lanterns?
Shug.......
We always called them Jack O' lanterns. Our church will be holding our annual pumpkin patch sale beginning this Saturday. Lots of work, but it's so much fun to watch the children and adults come by to find just the perfect one.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Shug!
good morning Martha. I love church festivals where more emphasis is put on family than the spoons of halloween. it is awesome to see the faces on little children as they win in the cake walks and play games
ReplyDeleteHow fun they are! Your header made me smile outloud!
ReplyDeleteI've not helped carve a pumpkin since childhood, but my last workplace held annual contests between departments. (Luckily, because I worked for the GM I was exempt!)
Pumpkin carving and searching for the perfect one was always a tradition for our 2 boys growing up. It was a fun thing to do as a family. I loved the costumes of long ago before everything gruesome and ugly became the norm.
ReplyDeleteSue
I haven't carved pumpkins for years. I prefer to display them whole, then after Halloween bake them off and puree the flesh for cooking.
ReplyDelete