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Monster's Who's Who

A New Father Reflects on His First Halloween

By Mark Stackpole

, an illustrated encyclopedia that my parents got me for Christmas when I was 2 years old. Sure, I couldn't quite read yet, but I spent hour after hour with pictures of monsters culled from real life, mythology and pop culture. When I did learn to read, I spent even more time with Tyrannosaurus Rex, Medusa, King Kong and the Loch Ness Monster.

I'm not quite sure why Mom and Dad got it for me, but it doesn't really matter; some of my best friends turned out to be monsters. It's like my yearbook – if I went to high school in The Twilight Zone. I still have it, minus a binding that quit after the millionth read, and plan on showing it to Corinne when she is old enough not to eat it. I figure we can take it slow at first.

So, for starters, there won't be much trick-or-treating since she can't walk yet, but she will certainly be dressed up. While I might have been tempted to figure out an "Alien Baby vs. Predator Baby" costume set for Corinne and her cousin, Josh, Charlotte and I figured that we would go for cute this year. In fact, her Winnie-the-Pooh-Dressed-As-a-Honeybee ensemble may just be the cutest thing that I have ever seen. Even the most frightful of Halloween monsters would be tempted to give her a big hug and drop candy into her little purple basket. In return, she would laugh and give them a big hug, punctuated by a sloppy open-mouthed kiss and a pat on the back. ("You're not Mommy, heck, you're not even Daddy, but you look a little like him. That's close enough – for now.")

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