The Great Pumpkin Hunt

I spent most of this morning and the early part of the afternoon with my husband. We ventured out of the house to go on what I can only describe as the Great Pumpkin Hunt.

My husband’s childhood was far different than mine in that he grew up not celebrating any holiday. I don’t just mean American holidays because he grew up in another country, I mean any holiday at all. His father believed that holidays were a waste of time, and therefore his family had no celebrations of any kind.

When he moved to the U.S. Many, many years ago he was already an adult, so all holiday celebrations were conducted in an adult manner. Therefore, he missed out on the wonders that most children experience at the various holidays.

Having learned this early in our relationship, when we got together 6 years ago at Christmas time, I was determined to create for him a little of the magic he had missed as a child. I must have been successful because my loving husband has come to embrace many of the holidays we celebrate in this country.

His favorite however is Halloween. While he is too old to go trick or treating, and has never even attending a costume party, he has discovered carving jack-o- lanterns and finds this activity endlessly enjoyable. There fore each year he has set out to choose the perfect pumpkin to celebrate the holiday.

While I love the way he throws himself into this holiday and I also enjoy seeing his creations each year, the hunt for the perfect pumpkin has become something of an event in itself.

Today however, the pumpkin hunt reached new heights. We traveled over 40 miles, stopped at 6 or 7 farms and even came home with a half a dozen pumpkins that my husband announced were okay but not quite what he was looking for.

After several hours of driving around and fruitless suggestions I was exhausted and he was disillusioned in his hope of ever finding that one pumpkin that was perfect for what he has in mind for this years annual event.

Finally, a bit downcast he suggested we head for home. We did making a stop at the local grocery so he could run in and get something to take to work for a snack.

When he came out of the store, he was grinning from ear to ear and carrying guess what? Yes, another pumpkin. But this one was not just any pumpkin, it was the one we had spent the entire day searching for only to find it a mere two miles from our house!

Having examined it closely, I do not know what makes this pumpkin superior to the other pumpkins we chose or even to any other pumpkin we saw on our adventures. It is not the biggest, or the fattest, or even the best shaped. To me it is simply a pumpkin.

To my husband however, it is the crown jewel of the pumpkin world and he can’t wait to take his carving tool in hand and create something unique out of it.

While I don’t quite understand his delight in this activity, I do love to see the look of pure boyish joy on his face like he wore today having found that pumpkin.

I also like knowing, that as adult and responsible as he is most of the time, that on these few occasions he can go back in time and rediscover part of his childhood that he had been denied.