HARVEST

Sunny was excited for the Halloween party in English-Ing, our neighbor, an English educational institution residing in the mid-layer between 1st and 2nd floor, where was the old location of EF before I went to Chicago. We were not their membership or student, but I thought they were doing a business promotion so they won’t refuse us to take part in the party.

Sunny completed her homework early. After supper, she changed clothes, combed hair, pined a little crown on her hair, and took a basket with some candies, we started off.

I told Sunny on the way, “Don’t hope too much. This is China, not Chicago.”

Stepped into the lobby, the light was dim and the floor was scattering pieces tissues, which I wondered if were a part of the decoration. A staff greeted us and indicated us to go inner portion.

Walking along a dark aisle with a cluster of black balloon hanged along the wall, we heard a human being’s noises mixed with some sounds made by percussion instruments, and then a flock of people were found crowding at the turning of the other end of the aisle.

In the torch light occasionally flashed out of the screens of the class room lining along two sides of the aisle, I could see some kids were peeking into the rooms through the glasses, screaming. Adults, who looked like the kids’ parents, were fussing around and busy like bees with looking for their unfound kids.

Later, a group of kids came out of a room, wearing costumes made with old bed sheets, or with rough make up on faces.

Everything looked so shaggy, shabby, and shoddy! This was a super boring event.

Sunny won’t let me go, while she was busy with exploring every room. I had not choice but standing there, leaning against the wall of the aisle, holding Sunny’s candy basket, reminding me of the old bald lady standing at the door of Starbucks in the corner of Clinton and Adams.

Last autumn we were in Chicago. To us, the Halloween was the most enchanted one in the western traditional festival. We had known a lot about Christmas, but Halloween would be a brand new experience.

From the early October, I found that at the doors of the houses near Sunny’s school were decorated by pumpkins, corns, and dead-headed lanterns. Sometimes, when I was walking down the street to pick up Sunny, I could find a squirrel jumped on the grass carrying a corn under the half yellowed trees which I could not tell the name.

On 28th, Philip invited us to take part in a pumpkin carving party in Kent, there Sunny carved her first Jack-o'-lantern.

Oh, those busy days! We devoted every weekend for the rehearsal of Nutcracker Children Cast in the Joffrey Ballet’s studio located on 1# north State Street. Thus we could not miss the events happened in downtown.

From the mid of October, the fountain in Daley Plaza was found to be dyed into orange, and then a Haunted Village was set up bit by bit within two weeks later. Pumpkins were decorated on the dark cyan walls, and ghost figures were leaning out of the windows. The Halloween smell was gathering up here.

A parade happened on October 21, 2006 at 12:00pm at the Corner of State and Randolph. Sunny dressed up as Merlin although she died for a Snow White’s costume, which I thought the price $44 was too much for such a cheesy dress. Anyway, Sunny’s Merlin character was completed satisfied me, she looked just like a real magician who was wise and well educated. We followed the parade in a circle, and stopped in Daley Plaza, where gathered thousand people to watching circus, and, for the candies.

Two girls were coveting the candies in my basket.
I announced, “trick or treat!”
They did not understand and said in Chinese to me, “Can we eat?”
“No. You give me.” I responded evilly for I had no authority to expense the candies, but I could increase their quantity, it would be fun.

The most exciting episode of Halloween was “trick or treat”, which we could not omit.

But I was hesitating. We lived in PT, a big building where inhabited mainly by foreigners, such as Indian, Korean, and Chinese. Sunny had decided to knock on every door in this building, how much did these foreigners accepted this typical western tradition and would give a piece of candy to a strange kid standing at the door? Besides, it would be a super stupid thing if I accompanied Sunny to ask for candies, but was it safe enough for a little girl roaming around the 49 floors in this towered up building? I was not sure.

After dinner, a slightly knocking and a sweet “trick or treat” penetrated into my room. We bubbled up, dashing to open the door. A little Indian with bright big dark eyes and dark skin, no more than three-year old, accompanying by the mother was standing at my door. We gave the kid candies joyfully.

Greatly inspired by the little Indian, Sunny carried her pumpkin basket and began her march. I set up a time bar, 10 minutes later, I must see her back.In the first round, Sunny was back with an empty basket. I granted her another 10 minutes, and this time Sunny was back with a beaming happiness, she had a full basket!

Purportedly, her fortune began from an old man who was holding a cat when he unloaded a handful candies into Sunny’s basket. And then, a Korean young man had not candy but gave her a heavy bucket of ice cream instead. An Indian man seemed had no idea about “trick or treat”, lazily fetch out a bill; Sunny was scared and run away.

Sunny got a good harvest in the Halloween in Chicago, 2006.

Suddenly, Sunny appeared in front of me out of a room, with several ugly strokes of make up in her face. I said, “Forgot to tell you, don’t let any make up stay on your face.”
“I know, it can be washed.” Sunny answered.
“I wait for you in the lobby.”
“Shall we go now?”
“Yes, I hope.”

Such fluent English!

I could feel that several spotlights of envying eye focused on us. I really enjoyed and I did consider that we were really worthy all of them, because we had invested so much efforts, pain, tears, and blood, which would sure gain good harvest gradually, in the coming days.