Hanging above the fireplace in my library is a picture of Augusta Alexander, the infamous nurse who died in the fire at Gravesend Sanitarium in 1901, gliding through the late-night stillness of Midlothian Cemetery.
A heavy, full moon hangs overhead, covered in part by dark, swirling clouds. Beneath her boots, the earth is littered with fractured masonry, overturned clods of soil, and pale white tulips scattered on her path.
Closest to Augusta, the petals have rotted at the edges, and their stems have twisted into unnatural knots, as if the dead and dying tulips had been tortured by her approach.
The flowers aren’t the only thing being tortured by Augusta.
Since I brought her portrait into my house, I can hear the sounds of the bones in their coffins and tombs telling each other to be quiet. “Be still, she’ll be gone soon enough,” they whisper frantically to each other.
Sometimes I can even catch the soft whisper of Augusta’s veil rippling in the night air.
But I have a terrible feeling that Augusta is still in this world and in that cemetery, and that the dead and I will never rest as long as she walks among the graves and through her picture every night.
I am going to continue to write long hand in cursive.
I will continue to take typing tests so that I can check on my speed and accuracy.
I don’t have digital clocks in my house. The clocks I do have, have an hour hand, a minuted hand and a second hand on their faces. When the power goes out, they don’t fail me.
I could start writing on my phone and rely on my thumbs to do the work instead of using a word processor, I could get fancy digital clocks that glow in the dark, I could start to print in block letters and add emoji’s instead of using punctuation.
But as I get older I am finding I hate to be rushed, I like taking my time. In fact, I will go out on a limb and say I love to take my time because so much of it was taken from me and lost to me and at my age, I’m not going to let that happen again.
Poppy and her sister Cleo stood in front of their old family house on Alderwood Street and Poppy was speechless.
“I thought you said it was run down,” Poppy sputtered. “I thought you said it was a dive.”
” Well – ”
“It’s a shell! It’s absolutely in ruins! I wouldn’t haunt this place if I was a chain-rattling, sheet-wearing ghost,” Poppy cried.
” Get up Poppy. A woman of your age on the ground sobbing like a baby. Honestly. It’s not dignified. ”
” I thought someone would take care of it, I thought arrangements were made. ”
Cleo looked down at her sister. She sighed and then took a seat next to her. She could feel the damp from rotting leaves soaking into her backside.
“You can’t expect anyone to have wanted to do that. Nobody wants anything to do with a house where the entire family was murdered in their beds by an axe-wielding maniac.”
“But Cleo—”
” Face it, Poppy, no matter what state it’s in, this is our home and this is where our hearts are. ”
Cleo stood up and held her hand out to her sister. She thought about the eight hearts that their killer had taken from their family and buried in the side yard after he had made himself lunch and cut himself a slice of the apple pie their mother had made the day before.
If you are thinking this Halloween is going to be like all of the other Halloweens and that is a reason to put off jumping in now and getting into the Halloween Spirit here are some fun facts about Halloween 2026
There are going to be a Meteor Showers-
Meteor showers were viewed as powerful cosmic omens, divine messages, or warnings of impending doom rather than predictable planetary interactions with comet debris trails.
The Ancient Meanings and Omens
Portents of War and Disaster: Many ancient civilizations viewed sudden streaks of light as disturbances in the sacred order of the heavens, forecasting great wars, plagues, or poor harvests.
Cultural Specifics:
The Aztecs saw falling stars as direct messages from the gods.
The Blackfeet of Montana interpreted meteors as a sign that sickness would strike the tribe during the upcoming winter.
Chinese mythology often linked them to the souls of ancestors bridging the earthly realm and the divine
Draconids Meteor Showers
Active Dates: October 6–10, 2026
Peak Date: Night of October 8, 2026
Expected Rate: Around 5 meteors per hour
Best Viewing: Early evening, unlike most showers that require waiting until after midnight.
Details: Caused by comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, this is a short, minor shower best viewed beneath dark skies
Orionid Meteor Shower
Active Dates: October 2 – November 7, 2026
Peak Date: Predawn hours of October 21–22, 2026
Expected Rate: 15 to 25 meteors per hour under dark skies.
Parent Body: Halley’s Comet
Best Viewing: From roughly 3:00 a.m. local time until dawn, after the bright waxing gibbous moon sets.
Details: Known for being extremely fast and bright (traveling at about 41 miles per second), Orionid meteors seem to radiate from the constellation Orion, though they can appear across any part of the night sky
and if that isn’t enough to get you Halloween Science Mojo working there will be a Hunter’s Moon:
Photographer Unknown
Name origin: The name comes from old Native American and European folklore.
Hunting season: Historically, October was the time when farmers finished gathering crops and hunters tracked fattened deer and other animals by the bright moonlight.
Winter prep: This extra light helped hunters stock up on meat and supplies to prepare for the cold winter months.
The Hunter’s Moon is special because it rises only about 30 minutes later each night instead of the usual 50 minutes, providing extra bright moonlight for several evenings in a row
Folklore and Traditions Hunter’s Moon:
Herne with his steed, hounds and owl, observed by the Duke of Richmond and the Earl of Surrey, in Harrison Ainsworth’s Windsor Castle, illustrated by George Cruikshank, c. 1843
The Wild Hunt: Northern European legends say phantom hunters and hounds sweep across the air during this season, acting as an omen for war or change.
Readiness and Magic: Modern witchcraft and folklore view the October full moon as a time for protection rituals, setting boundaries, and gathering inner resources for winter.
General Moon Superstitions: General lore says seeing any new or full moon over your right shoulder brings good luck
The Hunter’s Moon is also known as
The Blood Moon
and
The Sanguine Moon
You can also note on your calenders:
There are going to be Five- count them FIVE Fridays.
There will be followed by FIVE Saturdays
Halloween will be on a Saturday
( won’t happen again until 2037)
Clocks fall back on Halloween
( We get an extra hour of Halloween )
And there you have it, little factoids to help you jump start the ol’ Halloween Spirits!
