Here in our quiet cul-de-sac, where few children live, we don’t tend to go in so much for wearing costumes, face painting, house or garden decoration when Halloween season arrives. Though pumpkins may be bought and carved into lanterns, and some might be ingested too as pies, soup or lattes.
What strikes me most about Halloween, apart from the potentially ghoulish aspects, is the event which All Saints Eve (as it’s also known as) is based on. It’s the night before All Hallows Day (or All Souls’ Day), where we remember and honour dear, departed friends, family, saints and martyrs.
We all leave traces of our presence here. Imprints that do not fade. Soul markers in the lives of others. And a lasting legacy of how we lived out our days. How we have loved and offered grace. How we reflected the life of Christ within and manifested His presence.
That’s a sobering thought. But it’s also an encouraging one. Because the best of ourselves is largely hidden to us. When we act and react selflessly, out of receiving God’s goodness and grace, then we are less likely to be noticing and applauding those deeds.
Your life counts. You matter. You impact others far more than you might realise. The imprints of your lived out life will endure into eternity itself. As we live in the light of eternity, may we seek to honour those who have gone before us, love others well, make wise choices and live with hearts willingly surrendered to God.
Imprints
Halloween
season of mischief, mayhem
carving pumpkins
making jack-o’-lantern horrors
to help us to see in the dark
apple bobbing
and children playing pranks
they’re dressing up
threats given if they don’t receive
good supply of confectionery
I prefer to think
of it being All Hallows Eve
and celebrating
All Hallows Day, remembering
the deceased, lost and fallen
a time to honour
those who we’ve known and loved
passing of a life
souls laid here now to rest
saints gone to be with Christ
it’s a reminder
making us more mindful
as sand slips through
the swift hourglass of time
we’ll leave an imprint to find
© joylenton
PS: you can get the lowdown on Halloween here and All Souls’ Day here, plus fascinating facts about pumpkins here. 🙂
Poetry Joy 
“We all leave soul markers in the lives of others.” This whole paragraph, and the next two, are breath-stoppingly lovely, Joy, reminding me today that how we live the smallest, most hidden moments of our days counts more than we imagine. Thank you, dear wordsmith.
Laurie, I am happy and grateful you found a soul takeaway within those words. The “most hidden moments of our days” are rich with potential and promise, though it’s not always clear to us. God loves to surprise and delight the eager eye, open heart and listening ear of His noticing child. Who knows, we might even see angels in our midst! Bless you, dear lyrical friend. xo 💜
Reblogged this on Pastor Michael Moore's Blog and commented:
A beautiful reflection ❤️❤️
Thank you, Michael! I’m glad it spoke to you, my friend. Bless you, Brother. 💜
Love the poem! So good!
I love that you love it, Tara! God is so generous with His gift of words and in providing the joy of having encouraging friends, like you. 😊🌼
Oh Joy, this stanza is so beautiful:
“It’s a reminder
making us more mindful
as sand slips through
the swift hourglass of time
we’ll leave an imprint to find.”
Yes, we do need to be reminded that we are making imprints to be found everywhere we step. It is so easy to think that what we say or do doesn’t matter. And yet, when we pause, we realize that those who have gone before us have left such imprints on our lives. So then we will leave our own imprint. Thank you for these thoughts to be more aware of how my days affect those around me. I am thankful for the imprint you have left on my life Dear Friend! Blessings, love and hugs to you! xoxo
Dear Bettie, those words challenge and inspire us, don’t they? Our lives are never just about ourselves. We have the potential to impact and influence others for good or ill. In the remembrance of those who have gone before us, we can seek to emulate the positive. I am truly thankful for your imprint in my life and impact on my faith journey. You inspire me so much! Blessings, love and hugs to you too! xoxo 💜
great post Joy! I love All saints and All souls days. they are such thin places, gateways, sacred times…tthanks.
Indeed they are, Nancie! Celtic history seeping into today. Sacred times and places are so needful to encourage us to pause and slow, while we savour the Holy in a deeper way. Bless you, friend! 😊❤
I threw lots of parties when I did family day care, they were always safe and fun. I never gave out candy in Atlanta after older people started making trouble. When I moved to a suburb I bought candy and no one came, I took it to the nursing home. Over the past few years I may have had a dozen or so. It is a shame that the fun of going door to door has been taken away. Children grow up way to fast and the times we live in make it hard to have fun sometimes.
Becky, such times can be fun, I guess. Though I didn’t get to experience Halloween celebrations in my childhood. And they hadn’t really taken off here when we were raising our sons. But it’s good to see churches offering an alternative celebration of the Light of Christ instead, complete with confectionery! 💟
I love your perspective here and your poem, Joy. It’s a good way to look at this day. I do like the way some churches are offering alternatives. I also like to think of this day as Reformation Day, though it’s quite often forgotten. When I was a teacher, we would cover the story and make little booklets. I’m grateful for the imprint you have left on my life! Thank you for reminding us to leave imprints. This line especially deepened the longing in my heart – “How we reflected the life of Christ within and manifested His presence.” May God give us grace to honor Him! Love and hugs to you!
Thank you, Trudy, for reminding me of Reformation Day. That really would be a great focus for this time of year. Thank you too for sharing the story of being a teacher. Now I know where your clear gift with words and caring nature may have originated! I am grateful for the imprint knowing you as fellow writer/blogger and friend has made on my life. You have such a beautiful way of encouraging and nurturing souls, especially those who have been hurt and wounded by life. I see God’s light and grace shining brightly from you, dear friend. Love and hugs to you too! xo 💜