My bedroom was quiet, except for the rustling
sound of my cheetah costume as my mom helped me put it on. The fabric
candy bag with the witch face
on it sat empty in the corner. As my “cat eye” makeup was
being put on, i thought about the chilly night and the chocolate I
would receive.
The wind had the tree branches tapping against my window, creating
a spooky effect in the dimly lit room. It was October 31, 1999, and
I was
ready to go trick-or-treating with my friends.
The car ride to my friend Zoe’s house seemed a million years long. I stared out the window at the strange patterns and shapes that my excited thoughts created out of the shadows from the bare trees that lined each side of the road. A chill went down my spine. The family car pulled to an abrupt halt as we pulled in front of Zoe’s
large house. We got out of the car and were greeted by my friend Macie
(whose name is actually Erin), and her mother. Zoe and her mother also
greeted us warmly as they stepped outside. We finally started off into
the chilly night.
my friends and I, accompanied by our mothers, my brother Adam, and
Macie’s sister Delaney, went to the first house, a large, overly decorated farmhouse style house. “Trick-or -treat!” rang five voices as the delicately carved, cherry-stained oak door opened, revealing an old woman and a terrier, who was yapping wildly. We each received two Almond Joy’s and a handful of Hershey’s Kisses. As we continued along over an area of approximately two square miles, I got chocolate at almost every house. Chocolate! I popped a piece into my mouth, letting it melt slowly, filling my mouth with the delicious taste of chocolate, and my nose with that same sweet aroma. When I finally came back to earth, I found myself at Macie’s house, saying goodbye to her, her mom, and Delaney, already walking in the direction of Zoe’s
house. When we got there, instead of leaving, we were invited in.
My mom said,”Well...I guess...Maybe just a few minutes...O.K.” I
walked inside, knowing a few minutes was actually a few hours.
The brightly lit entrance hall temporarily blinded me as I stepped
into Zoe’s house. Right when I could see again, her dog, Chip,
bounded over and jumped on me, licking my face. Zoe and I walked up
the stairs with our candy bags, trying to avoid Chip. When we got upstairs,
we changed out of our itchy costumes and leaped onto her large, comfortable,
bed. We were still holding our very full candy bags. I started a conversation
about how dumb our teacher was, how dumb some of the kids in our class
were, how dumb homework is, and everything else about school that ws
dumb,(or not so dumb). That conversation turned into annoying parents
can be, the annoying things they say, how confident they can be about
saying no, etc. Finally that turned into a dare: Who could eat the
most chocolate?
I crammed an Almond Joy (one of many) into my mouth, tasting the sweetness
of milk chocolate and shredded coconut. Another piece, another, and
another. Chocolate, chocolate, more chocolate. After eating steadily
(well, almost
steadily) for (about) an hour, I started to feel sick. So you know
what I did? I went downstairs to get a few mini bags of O-KE-DOKE popcorn.
Feeling sicker and sicker, I ate until I couldn’t eat another bite. I laid down on Zoe’s
sheep fur rug and nausea overcame me.
“Rachel, wake up! It’s time to go home,” my mom said quietly,
shaking me slightly. Waking up, feeling calmer, but still nauseous. I shakily
rose to my feet and slowly walked down the stairs with Zoe on my left side and
my mom on the right. I walked (unstably) to the car, stumbling through the car
door, landing on the soft cotton interior.
The car ride on the way home seemed long too, but for different reasons. Nausea,
headache, stomachache, just to name some. Our Ford Escort pulled into the garage
and I climbed out. Feeling overwhelmed, I walked slowly into the house and to
my bedroom.
I sank down onto my bed, and nausea made me groan with pain. A feeling of calmness
came over me as I closed my eyes in a restful sleep, filled with peaceful dreams.
The nausea went away slowly as I slept on.
My eyes slowly opened, feeling weighted with lead as I (slowly) woke up. The
memories of last night: nausea, headache, and chocolate rushed back to me. Sunlight
fell across my face as the day brightened. I half rose, half fell out of my bed,
still feeling a bit weak. Dressed and ready to go, I crept down the stairs and
into the kitchen. On the table was breakfast: chocolate chip pancakes and hot
chocolate. Oh no! Not more chocolate!
That Halloween night was over, with only a half-empty bag of candy to remind
me of that night. I shouldn’t have eaten all that candy and I hope you never, never, never did
(or never, never, never will) either.