76
| SUNRAYS
OCTOBER 2013
ONLINE:
SCTXCA.ORG
Halloween Stories
A TRICK FOR A TREAT
Like most kids growing up in the ’50s and ’60s, my twin sister and I went happily
trick-or-treating in our Houston neighborhood just past twilight. I have a vivid
memory of one certain Halloween night when we were around the age of 9. The
couple who lived in a big house around the corner, whom our family had never
met before, apparently took the benign term “Trick-or-Treat” way too literally…
That particular night we rang their doorbell and said our usual “Trick or Treat”
when they cracked opened the door. The husband and wife looked down at us
very seriously before asking, “What trick will you do for your treat? You can’t
leave until you do a trick for us.” They scared us both to death! We just stood
there, frozen.
Fortunately, in their semi-dark living room I happened to spy an organ like
ours at home and blurted out, “Maybe we could play a duet on your organ.”
They agreed to let us in and we somehow managed to play something like “Tea
for Two” as they watched and listened without a word. It worked!
When we finally got our promised treats, we high-tailed it off their front porch and
never looked back. What terror in our young hearts!! Needless to say, we told all
our neighborhood friends to skip that foreboding house on future Halloween nights.
―Cheryl Maggio, N30
ALL-OUT CLOWNING AROUND
This is my husband, Tom McMahon, and me, taken at our house in
Columbus, Ohio, in October 1980. We were invited to a fabulous Hal-
loween party by the owner of a T-shirt printing company and we knew
many “creatives” would be there. So we borrowed these costumes and
the make-up from a friend. Usually, I’m pretty lazy when it comes to
costumes, but this time we went all out. The party was a blast and no
one knew who we were until I opened my mouth.
―Vicki Simons, N62
A MYSTERY
When fourth grade started, there was
a new student―most of our class had
been together since kindergarten so
this was a big deal. The new student’s
name was Ronnie and he was very qui-
et. When school got out for the summer
that year, we didn’t realize that Ronnie
quite suddenly moved away.
Early that summer, Sylvia and I rode
our bikes by Ronnie’s house. The
house was a two-story white clapboard
farm house. It looked empty. We left
our bikes and looked in the windows.
Then, we tried the front door and it
was unlocked. There was nothing on
the first floor, so we climbed the stairs.
We looked around the rooms. On the
small shelf next to the sink, we saw
an old fashioned razor and shaving
mug. We made guesses about why only
these two items had been left behind.
It was a mystery.
School started back up as normal for
fifth grade. And, at Halloween, we
went trick or treating. The next day
at school the fifth-graders met on the
black top, as usual. We talked about the
best treats; everyone added their com-
ments. Two boys, though, were unusu-
ally quiet. Someone asked them about
what they thought were the best treats.
Mike said they saw something in
an upstairs window at Ronnie’s old
house. After a long pause Mike and
Alan said they saw a razor moving
back and forth. They added there was
a cup with the razor.
Being fearful of getting into trouble,
Sylvia and I had never mentioned
going into the house and seeing the
razor and the shaving mug. Was the
house haunted?
― Daneen Viers, N26
PHOTO BY SHERRY MCRAE
