Happy has become sort of a relative term these days, hasn’t it? Happy enough may be the more fitting way to say it this year. Not-nearly-as-happy-as-last-October-but-it-could-always-be-worse is even more appropriate – but a little long-winded. It’s been nice to see some of the normal October things appearing – pumpkins for sale and even for picking, Halloween and fall décor in the stores and on porches, and everything – and I mean everything – pumpkin spice (Did we really need Pumpkin Pie Spice Pringles? I will definitely be able to stop once I pop those!).
It’s hard to say at this point (September 21st to be exact) what Halloween will look like and if there will be trick-or-treating, but it’s safe to say it will be different from any we have experienced. As parents, it’s sad to see so many traditions being paused for the year, whether it was an annual trip to the beach or a trip to the State Fair of Virginia, a birthday celebration at Grandma’s, or a ghoulish night at King’s Dominion’s Halloween Haunt. With the holidays coming up, we will need to continue to find silver linings in all of these changes. Maybe you never really got to enjoy seeing your own kid all dressed up for Halloween in years past because you were too busy entertaining a house full of friends and neighbors. Or maybe you were so exhausted after cooking a huge Thanksgiving meal for family from near and far every year that you stopped looking forward to the holiday at all. This year may be just what we need to allow us to focus on just our own families and the meaning behind the holidays and not get so wrapped up in all the extra fuss. Let’s look forward to reinventing our upcoming celebrations – and who knows, our new ways of doing things might just turn into our future traditions.
Getting to the issue in-hand (see what I did there?), there’s a lot to love in this month’s RFM and so many articles that I related to. With a freshman in high school now (can you believe it?! Will was three when we started RFM!), Paula Buckley’s insights into what to consider when thinking about what comes after high school was very thought-provoking (page 24). And I loved Joan Tupponce’s deep-dive into one of our favorite family shows, America’s Got Talent, and really enjoyed learning more about the two Virginia acts from this season (page 30). In this month’s Well Family department (page 26), Dr. Khalid Matin from VCU Massey Cancer Center discusses a topic that we don’t like to think about but need to – colorectal health. I am always so proud to be able to share potentially life-saving information with our readers, and after getting my first colonoscopy just last month (clean bill of health – yay!), I am passionate about making sure everyone knows just how easy the process really is.
I could go on and on about all that we have packed into this issue, but jump in and see for yourself!
We’ll see you next month for our November/December double holiday issue!
