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| 1991 vintage Flash mask |
She turns 23
today, our little Halloween treat. But a visit to the Panama City Jaycees
Haunted House under construction earlier this month set my mind on a minor
event of that momentous day in 1991, and from there the Halloween memories
began to tumble.
Apparently, the
red-and-yellow plastic coveralls with the lightning logo conferred upon her
brother the super-speed powers of the comic book hero whose adventures he had
viewed on television. At least, one would think so, to see him running
everywhere he went.
The mask and
costume also rendered him fearless. Near the end of the haunted maze, a man in
some kind of scarecrow/clown outfit squatted down and made spooky noises at the
boy, who drew back his right arm and promptly punched the man in the nose of
his mask.
I apologized, the
man laughed, and Fla sh
propped his fists on his hips in a heroic pose, having vanquished evil.
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| Jessi and Nathan |
The Flash’s
greatest adventure was on my mind when I walked the unfinished maze above
Panama City Marine Institute, which has sheltered the Jaycees Haunted House for
11 years. (You can view a video tour through the haunted house at Panama City.com,
and see the schedule on pages 10-11 for times and details on the event.)
Will Hancock, who
has supervised the Haunted House project for the Jaycees for several years,
told me last week that the event is “very alive” and doing robust business.
“I am pleased
with all the hard work and dedication put in so far,” Will said. “The ‘13
Ghosts’ room and the ‘Oculus’ room have been the most consistent (frights) so
far, but that can change tonight. We are adding more sound and lighting as we
speak.”
The scares, while
safe for adults and teens, are not appropriate for little children. I just hope
no one gets punched in the nose.
No frightful
creatures jumped out at me during my tour — which was lucky, since I had no
hero handy to leap to my defense. But suddenly, 1991 seemed like only yesterday.
When I wondered where the years had gone, I could feel them piled up like a
bottleneck, heavy and thick with sweet memory.
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| Jessi playing with makeup. |
... Sitting with
the kids at a fire in a friend’s Cove area front yard, reading “The Raven” and
handing out candy.
.... Wrapping the
kids like toilet paper mummies during a contest at another friend’s Halloween
party at Pine Log.
... Walking the
sidewalks of North
Shore gath er massive hauls of candy.
... Playing “pin
the fangs on the monster” at one of Jessi’s earliest birthday parties in
Century.
... Dressing in
costumes to grab supper at Golden Corral on yet another Halloween.
So many autumn evenings,
pumpkins carved, yards decorated, homemade costumes, movie nights with the
house full of her friends, and outfits I can’t even begin to recall.
In that moment,
picturing the boy in the Flash uniform holding a newborn little girl in a
hospital room, I wondered if ghosts of the past truly haunt houses, or if they
only haunt old men whose children have grown up.
Peace.
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