In one account of traditional seasonal customs, the first frost following October’s full moon marked a time when families allowed their hearth fires to burn out, brought their animals back from grazing, and completed the gathering of the harvest. It was a turning point in the year, when the work of gathering gave way to the work of preparing for winter.
October is the month when I can fully indulge in all things spooky. The countdown to Halloween is one of my favourite parts of autumn, and there is something wonderfully exciting about the weeks leading up to it. Decorations come out, costumes are planned, ghost stories, and every dark evening seems like a good excuse to light a candle and embrace the strange and mysterious.
At home, the excitement grows as the Witchlings and I prepare for our Halloween party. It has become one of those lovely seasonal traditions that brings everything I love about this time of year together: folklore, a touch of magic, playful spookiness, and the joy of creating something special with the people I love.
🌙 What is Samhain?
Date: October 31 to November 1, Samhain marks the beginning of the darker half of the year in many Celtic traditions. It is a seasonal threshold where harvest is complete and attention turns inward.
🌿 Origins, Historical Roots & Meaning
The name Samhain comes from Gaelic tradition, particularly associated with Ireland and Scotland. In historical Gaelic seasonal reckoning, Samhain marked the beginning of winter and was one of the four major seasonal festivals, alongside Imbolc, Bealtaine, and Lughnasadh.
It was a time of transition, when the agricultural year drew to a close and communities prepared for the demands of the colder months. Livestock management, food stores, and the practical realities of winter were central to life in an agricultural society. The season carried both uncertainty and necessity: what had been gathered would now need to sustain people through the months ahead.
Samhain also held a place in traditional beliefs about the supernatural. Irish folklore describes it as a time when encounters with otherworldly beings were especially possible. Customs involving protection, offerings, feasting, and disguises appear in different historical and folkloric accounts, though practices varied between places and periods.
Many customs associated with modern Halloween developed through a complex mixture of Gaelic seasonal traditions, Christian observances such as All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, and later regional customs. Modern Samhain celebrations draw from several sources, so it is worth distinguishing contemporary spiritual interpretations from what can be established about historical practice.
🐈⬛ Remembrance Across Traditions 🐈⬛
Another tradition that offers a meaningful perspective on remembrance is Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, celebrated in Mexico, particularly on November 1 and 2. Rooted in Indigenous traditions and shaped over centuries by Catholic observances, it honours deceased loved ones through family gatherings, offerings, and the creation of ofrendas, or altars. These may include photographs, candles, marigold flowers, and foods once enjoyed by those who have died.
Traditions vary between communities and families, but remembrance is central to the celebration. Rather than treating death solely as an ending, Día de Muertos places the memories and stories of loved ones within the life of the family and community.
Día de Muertos is a distinct cultural tradition, not another name for Samhain. Yet reflecting on it alongside Samhain invites us to consider the many ways people honour the dead, preserve family histories, and maintain connections with those who are no longer physically present.
Core Themes:
Descent, Conservation, Remembrance, Protection, Release, Introspection, Thresholds
“As the year descends into darkness, we learn what deserves to be carried into the depths.”
🔮 The Psychological Alchemy
Samhain invites us to turn inward, and for many of us, that inward journey includes remembering those who are no longer with us. Death and grief are part of being human, yet everyday life rarely gives us a clear moment to sit with them. There are responsibilities to meet, routines to maintain, and days that keep moving whether we feel ready or not. Sometimes, we simply need permission to pause.
Ritual can offer a way to make that pause intentional. In his 2006 study of Samhain and Beltane rituals in contemporary spiritual practice, Bruce Manson explores how seasonal rituals can hold personal meaning and become vehicles for growth and transformation. Building on that broader understanding of ritual, we can consider how remembrance might find a place within our own Samhain observances.
4️⃣Four Ways to Make Space for Remembrance 🥀
1. Permission to remember
Setting aside time for someone we have lost allows memories and feelings to take centre stage without needing to justify them. We do not have to wait for an anniversary or a difficult day to remember someone. We can deliberately create a quiet moment to acknowledge their place in our lives, whether through lighting a candle, looking at a photograph, or simply sitting with our thoughts.
2. Making grief tangible
Grief can be difficult to put into words. Photographs, familiar objects, favourite foods, and meaningful songs give remembrance a physical expression. Preparing a recipe someone loved or holding an object that reminds us of them can offer a way to engage with their memory. These gestures do not remove grief, but they give us something tangible through which to acknowledge the relationship and what it continues to mean to us.
3. Shared remembrance
Remembering someone with others can help us feel less alone in our grief. Sharing stories with family and friends allows us to preserve the little details that made a person who they were: their humour, their habits, their passions, and the moments that still make us smile. Through these stories, memories become part of a shared history, connecting generations and keeping a person’s influence present in the lives they touched.
4. Making room for complicated feelings
Remembrance does not have to mean feeling only sadness or reverence. Grief can hold many emotions at once: affection, anger, gratitude, regret, humour, and even relief. We might laugh at a memory one moment and feel the weight of the loss the next. These feelings do not cancel one another out, and we do not need to force them into a neat or comforting conclusion. Making space for remembrance also means allowing ourselves to feel what arises without judging how grief should look.
Perhaps this is one of the quieter lessons of Samhain: we do not always need to move on, find closure, or turn our experiences into something positive. Sometimes we need to acknowledge what has happened and give ourselves room to live with it.
As the natural world settles into a season of conservation, we can practise a similar gentleness with ourselves. We can slow down, take stock, and decide what deserves our attention. Some memories may be painful; others may bring warmth or laughter. Some may feel close, while others return unexpectedly after years of silence. We do not need to summon every feeling or revisit every loss. We can simply make room for remembrance when we need it.
🕷️ Ritual Idea: Gathering 🕷️
Choosing one meaningful moment of connection within a season of conservation.
A seasonal gathering can be an expression of warmth, connection, and shared presence. As the darker months approach, we can be intentional about where we invest our energy, choosing moments that nourish us rather than spreading ourselves too thin. Sometimes, one meaningful gathering is enough to nurture connection as the world around us grows dormant.
For me, this tradition began when I made my current hearth my own in 2021. As an introvert, or perhaps an ambivert, I have learned to be mindful of my energy. I would rather invest it in the people and experiences that mean something to me than feel obliged to be everywhere and do everything.
One of the things that means the most to me is my time with the Witchlings. Samhain is a time when I remember departed friends and family, but it is also a time when I celebrate those who are here. Remembrance and joy can exist alongside one another. We can miss the people who are gone while appreciating the people who continue to shape our lives.
Every Halloween, we gather at my hearth for a themed party with the Witchlings’ friends and mine. Because the Witchlings are still minors, I will share only what they are comfortable with me sharing. What I can say is that this gathering has become a cherished part of our Halloween tradition, a little pocket of seasonal magic created together.
Perhaps this is another way to understand conservation. It does not mean withdrawing from life or turning away from celebration. It means recognising that our energy is precious and choosing where we want to spend it. For me, that means making space for remembrance, but also making room for laughter, costumes, shared traditions, and the people who are part of my life now.
As the year grows darker, we do not have to choose between honouring what we have lost and celebrating what remains. There is room for both around the hearth.
🕯️Closing Inspiration
As the darkness deepens, we are invited to turn towards the things that sustain us, not only the food in our cupboards or the warmth in our homes, but also the relationships, memories, and practices that help us feel grounded. The important thing is to recognise that our energy has seasons, too. As you enter the darker half of the year, consider what you want to preserve, what you are ready to release, and which moments deserve your full attention.
You do not have to keep everything alive through winter. You only have to care for what you choose to carry forward.
Samhain 2026
🧸Wishing you all a wonderful Halloween
Love,
Bloom
📚 Appendix
☉ Further Reading & References
- MexConnect – November 2: The Day of the Dead
An introduction to Día de Muertos, including its customs, cultural context, and significance as a time of remembrance. - Manson, B. (2006) – Research on Samhain and Beltane Rituals
A master’s thesis from Concordia University exploring Samhain and Beltane rituals in contemporary spiritual practice.
The four remembrance themes are a reflective application developed for this article, rather than four findings directly attributed to Manson’s thesis. - Llewellyn Publications – Samhain: Rituals, Recipes & Lore for Halloween, by Diana Rajchel. A guide to Samhain traditions, seasonal symbolism, rituals, recipes, and folklore.
- UNESCO (2008) – Día de Muertos: The Indigenous Festivity Dedicated to the Dead
An overview of Día de Muertos, its Indigenous roots, community traditions, and practices of honouring deceased loved ones.