Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere…

As my paternal grandfather would say, “It’s All Hallow’s Eve, Bethy!”  While I have few memories of him, the ones I do have are powerfully strong.  I fondly remember growing pumpkins with my Pop Sam (Sr.) in his backyard and then, in turn, growing some with my daughters.  Our family’s annual harvest of pumpkins is usually the fruits of labor from my sweet husband’s favorite late autumn activity:  pumpkin smashing day (more on this later in the season).  It was my grandfather who first shared with me the life advice from a pumpkin’s point of view:

Be well-ROUNDED.  Enjoy the SONshine.  Grow a THICK skin.  ROLL with it. Be grateful for the HARVEST.  Always PATCH things up.  CARVE out your goals.  Stand out in your FIELD.  Learn when to hold onto the VINE and when to let go.  Add SPICE to your life.  Always dream BIG.  

Ironically, he found something profoundly spiritual in the ritual of preparing a pumpkin for each Halloween.  From washing off the dirt and opening the pumpkin up to scoop out the inside “goop” to carving on a smile and filling the inside with a warm, glowing light… Pop Sam felt the pumpkin represented each of us from God’s unique perspective.  He told me, “we all need to occasionally wash off the dirt in our lives and then open ourselves up regularly to scoop out the yucky seeds of doubt, greed, hate, and more in order to allow our inner light to shine.”  While I seriously wonder what he would say about our world today, I’m grateful for his nuggets of practical advice in my memory bank.  And indeed, it begs the question today:

What “pumpkin” advice will others gratefully receive from you?

Happy Halloween, y’all…may the glow be with you!