Season of the Witch
Every neighborhood has a house with a great witch on Halloween. Our witch lived just a few houses down.
She was a whole lotta Baba Yaga. Not a pink glittery Glinda.
It was terrifying to even think of walking up her driveway. The big kids could do it. They were giddy about it. They bragged about it.
Temptation has a funny way of making a shy eight-year-old brave.
So my friend and I decided it was worth the risk. Dressed as little angels, we ventured up the driveway. Our Christmas garland halos sparkling in the Autumn sunshine as we floated down the path to the porch. There she was! Wild white hair coming out in all directions. An enormous wart like a bubble on the tip of her crooked, crone nose.
You must believe me.
It was dreadful. It didn’t matter that it was just a rubber mask.
Holding out a bowl overflowing with candy. Cackling! “Take as much as you want!” she said.
‘Take as much as you want!!!’
I froze half with fright and utter disbelief at the phrase ‘as much as you want’
In my house, sweets were a tightly guarded commodity. My mother would give each of her six kids 2 cookies. Then hide the rest of the package out of sight. Once in a while, my dad would slowly unwrap the gold metal foil from candy bar. Like a surgeon he used a knife to precisely divide it into six pieces. I recall deep discussions about exactly how precisely. But…I digress.
Back to me on the porch. My heart is racing. My poster board angel wings shaking. Fighting back my fear so I can grab a candy. It’s a strange candy. I’ve never seen it before. It was basically a clear packet shaped like a soda straw. It was filled with sugar. Not just ordinary white sugar. This sugar was vivid red, bright blue, intense yellow. So very colorful! My young artist’s eyes widened. As only an eight-year-old can, my mind deduced ‘This must be the kind of sugar you can only get from a real witch.’
I don’t know if it was the color, the sugar, or a spell. But, something came over me. As fast as I could, I dug my fingers in and scooped up great big handfuls.
I surprised and shocked even Baba Yaga with my unbridled greed. Did I mention only one of the little angels was fooling anyone with her costume?!
We ran away. Overcome with giddiness. But, braver. And, bragging all the way.
Exploration, oil on canvas, Siobhan Bedford
Every Halloween, I still think of that great witch.
After all these years her spell still charms. She woke up a kind of “artist attitude” in me. That feeling of take as much as you want, that every artist needs to make anything really interesting.
To be able to squeeze out big blobs of paint, as if the tube will never run out. To buy the best brushes even when the budget is tight. To be brave. To brag (just a little.) To stay wide-eyed to beauty even when it isn’t pretty.
About the painting
I made this painting when I was much younger. I wish I could remember what I was thinking while I worked on it. I do remember long ago it hung in a gallery for awhile. Since then, I’ve had it in storage with all my other really large paintings. My photography skills have improved. So I unwrapped it this past week to reshoot. I was hoping to find that I had dated it. When I looked on the back, all I had was a tiny signature and the title “Exploration.”
I really like the wild…almost eerie green and golden glow. It’s textured and moody. It’s a little raw with the exposed stapled edges of the canvas.
It’s very much in the spirit of the season. When I look at it today, I see an eye looking into a universe…maybe that is why I named it “Exploration".”
It also has the feel of a crystal ball…come closer my pretty. Wink! Like a real witch! Cackle! Cackle!
“And above all,
watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.” - Roald Dahl
Happy Halloween!
ps…
The thing about witches…
Be they old & bold.
Be they soulful & scary.
Be they wise & weird.
They be magic.
&
I Hope you have one when you need one! Boo!
