Welcome back to The Sunstone Way.
Have you picked out your costume? You’d better hurry – Halloween is this Friday, Oct. 31.
Mischief Managed
Halloween is a pretty big deal here at Sunstone. We work hard as a team, and we like to play hard as a team as well. Halloween may be the best excuse for a party throughout the year.
The experts who study this sort of thing call it teambuilding. I like to think of it as creating community – in this case a community of coworkers.
One of our longtime team members is what’s generally known as a Halloween addict. Her name is a secret, but her title is Marketing & Communications Manager Jennifer Huang. I think I got that right.
At any rate, she organizes our annual Halloween festivities, including the costume contest theme. This year, it’s Harry Potter, and we’ve been divided into four teams – the four houses of Hogwarts. These teams within our team compete for points, and the House Cup.
As I write, the competition is getting fierce. More than one wand has been broken. We’ll see what happens tomorrow. (I wonder how many Dumbledore costumes we’ll see.)
American Not-Quite Horror Story
Halloween has been a thing in our country for quite some time. There had been All Saints Day on Nov. 1 and All Souls Day on Nov. 2 for centuries. But in the modern times of the late 1800s, community leaders decided a Halloween focused on community and get-togethers would be more productive than hunting for ghosts and witches.
Candy manufacturers certainly endorsed that approach, nudging the tradition of trick-or-treating back into favor between 1920 and 1950. Today, an estimated $6 billion is spent on Halloween candy, costumes and Halloween decorations. One quarter of all the candy sold annually in the U.S. is bought for Halloween.
Lots of folks apparently like to get the rush of being scared – as long as it’s in a setting where it’s understood there’s no real danger. Haunted houses and scary mazes become more popular every year. I’ve tried a few – I think I’ll stick with bobbing for apples in the future!
Celebrating Culture
Dia de los Muertos isn’t technically Halloween, although it is inextricably linked due to the calendar. Much of Latin America marks Dia de los Muertos on Nov. 1 and 2, the original All Saints Day and All Souls Day in the Catholic tradition. Halloween is the day before, and both focus on the spirit world.
There are important differences, though. Dia de los Muertos is culture-specific – it traces its roots to Aztec beliefs that death is part of a sacred cycle and spirits of loved ones return to visit during the festival. Spanish colonists topped that with a connection to the holy days for saints and souls.
Despite the focus on death, this is a joyful holiday, emphasizing the familial continuity and gratitude to ancestors, and the continuation of life after death. Instead of scaring ghosts away, the traditional ofrendas (altars) welcome the souls of deceased relatives with their favorite foods and memories.
In short, Dia de los Muertos cements the relationships of families past and present – strengthening the family bond. That in turn strengthens the community as a whole.
Community Trust
Take another look at the idea of trick-or-treating. Imagine an alien from outer space watching children of all ages and sizes dressed in outlandish costumes going from door to door asking for candy – treats.
These children don’t know the people who are giving them something to eat. Most often, their parents don’t know them either.
Yet we trust our community to be kind to our children, to keep them safe. This trust and belief in the basic goodness of our neighbors is the bedrock on which we build.
It’s what allows us to work together for the greater good. And that is what we call The Sunstone Way!
Happy Halloween, and remember, always be a Sunstone!
John Keisler
CEO & Managing Partner
Sunstone Management, Inc.
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