Evening.
Jennifer was sitting in the living-room with her sister. They had decided that it was a good night for the Carving of the Pumpkin. An old ritual, one for which they were not too old. Not yet.
Jennifer had turned on the TV, and was waiting for the Charlie Brown Halloween special to begin. She had seen it countless times before, but like Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin, she did not give up on it. Meanwhile, Karen was trying to figure out a good way to carve the pumpkin. She had already tried a couple of patterns, drawing them on the pumpkin with a marker, but every time she got frustrated at what seemed to her to be poor results, and had started all over again.
"Come on Jen, you try something, I'm out of ideas," she said finally.
So Jennifer took the pen, and drew a really big, wailing mouth. Then she made a small, triangular, tilting nose. Then, perfect round eyes. Next the eyebrows. That was a pivotal point. With the eyebrows she could make the face frowning and evil looking, or she could make it mournful and anguished, or even playful. Of course, she chose the anguish, the sorrow. All in all, it looked scary enough.
"Okay," said Karen, "that's perfect." Of course she would have said that to anything Jennifer would have made. She just wanted to work on something she had not invented herself. Knife in hand, she started to cut out the eyes.
By now the TV show had begun. Charlie Brown had just been invited to his first Halloween party. Jennifer smiled. She was awed. Those Charlie Brown cartoons always put her in a kind of a trance. Those big weird skies in the background, and the dead leaves, and the naked trees. She always got a feeling of quiet meditation from those cartoons. She felt some of her most intense memory-feelings when she watched them. Something indescribable.
"I've never liked that show," Karen said. Jennifer did not reply. She felt bad; now she had her sister's feelings to think about, while watching the show, and it spoiled it for her a little. But she knew that it was no use saying anything. She just wished her sister had not said it.
The Jack O' Lantern was coming along. Snoopy was now flying on his kennel, shooting away at the Red Baron. He crashed behind enemy lines, and had to sneak back, amidst creepy and sad landscapes of lone farms and dead shivering trees. Karen handed her the knife, it was her turn, so she carved the nose. Linus, big eyed and hopeful, in the pumpkin patch with Sally, waiting for the Great Pumpkin. "What an idiot," said the kids in the cartoon.
"What an idiot," said Karen.
Of course, you don't understand. If I was there, I'd wait with Linus too. They all say that he spoiled his Halloween, that he missed the trick or treating. But in the end, he's the one that will have the most intense recollection of the moment. He's the one that'll have immortal feelings of awe and sadness, looking back on a childhood of believing. We have to play the game, even if we don't believe, for in the game we find truth. In the game-playing we meditate on things and we establish memories.
Those confused thoughts went through her head, and she suddenly yearned to go out, to roam the city in search of a pumpkin patch, and to spend the night there, in thought and meditation.
"Thought and meditation... thought and meditation... my, that Gordon Filligreen is really getting to me," she mused.
The Jack O' Lantern was finished around nine thirty. They looked at it, smiling, proud of themselves. They closed the living-room light, and looked at it some more, lit up by a candle. Then they put it outside, on the balcony, for the next day.
The ritual was over. They went up the stairs together, then split up to go to their respective rooms.
Jennifer was sitting in the living-room with her sister. They had decided that it was a good night for the Carving of the Pumpkin. An old ritual, one for which they were not too old. Not yet.
Jennifer had turned on the TV, and was waiting for the Charlie Brown Halloween special to begin. She had seen it countless times before, but like Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin, she did not give up on it. Meanwhile, Karen was trying to figure out a good way to carve the pumpkin. She had already tried a couple of patterns, drawing them on the pumpkin with a marker, but every time she got frustrated at what seemed to her to be poor results, and had started all over again.
"Come on Jen, you try something, I'm out of ideas," she said finally.
So Jennifer took the pen, and drew a really big, wailing mouth. Then she made a small, triangular, tilting nose. Then, perfect round eyes. Next the eyebrows. That was a pivotal point. With the eyebrows she could make the face frowning and evil looking, or she could make it mournful and anguished, or even playful. Of course, she chose the anguish, the sorrow. All in all, it looked scary enough.
"Okay," said Karen, "that's perfect." Of course she would have said that to anything Jennifer would have made. She just wanted to work on something she had not invented herself. Knife in hand, she started to cut out the eyes.
By now the TV show had begun. Charlie Brown had just been invited to his first Halloween party. Jennifer smiled. She was awed. Those Charlie Brown cartoons always put her in a kind of a trance. Those big weird skies in the background, and the dead leaves, and the naked trees. She always got a feeling of quiet meditation from those cartoons. She felt some of her most intense memory-feelings when she watched them. Something indescribable.
"I've never liked that show," Karen said. Jennifer did not reply. She felt bad; now she had her sister's feelings to think about, while watching the show, and it spoiled it for her a little. But she knew that it was no use saying anything. She just wished her sister had not said it.
The Jack O' Lantern was coming along. Snoopy was now flying on his kennel, shooting away at the Red Baron. He crashed behind enemy lines, and had to sneak back, amidst creepy and sad landscapes of lone farms and dead shivering trees. Karen handed her the knife, it was her turn, so she carved the nose. Linus, big eyed and hopeful, in the pumpkin patch with Sally, waiting for the Great Pumpkin. "What an idiot," said the kids in the cartoon.
"What an idiot," said Karen.
Of course, you don't understand. If I was there, I'd wait with Linus too. They all say that he spoiled his Halloween, that he missed the trick or treating. But in the end, he's the one that will have the most intense recollection of the moment. He's the one that'll have immortal feelings of awe and sadness, looking back on a childhood of believing. We have to play the game, even if we don't believe, for in the game we find truth. In the game-playing we meditate on things and we establish memories.
Those confused thoughts went through her head, and she suddenly yearned to go out, to roam the city in search of a pumpkin patch, and to spend the night there, in thought and meditation.
"Thought and meditation... thought and meditation... my, that Gordon Filligreen is really getting to me," she mused.
The Jack O' Lantern was finished around nine thirty. They looked at it, smiling, proud of themselves. They closed the living-room light, and looked at it some more, lit up by a candle. Then they put it outside, on the balcony, for the next day.
The ritual was over. They went up the stairs together, then split up to go to their respective rooms.
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