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October 3, 2009

Torn between the dark and the light

By STEVE OUELLETTE, You Had to Ask

An important moment in any young child's year comes in October, when he or she has to decide what costume to wear on Halloween.

My sons have been through the ritual every year since they hit trick-or-treating age. Will I be a ghost or a vampire? A baseball player or a football player? Spider-Man or Superman?

This year is different. This year has me dripping sweat and biting my nails. This year's decision has lasting, serious implications for my younger son and our entire family.

"Dad, I want to be either Yoda or Darth Vader."

Yoda OR Darth Vader? These two are not interchangeable. They're mutually exclusive. It's good vs. evil. It's like choosing between God or the Devil; dogs or cats; John or Yoko; Big Papi or Derek Jeter.

It's not like the Star Wars costuming decisions I had to make as a child — Han Solo or Luke Skywalker? Wookie or Ewok? Princess Leia or Jabba the Hutt? This one is a choice between the light side of the Force and the dark side "¦ and it is a choice, frighteningly, that my 7-year-old has to make for himself.

There is much for him to consider. Frankly, I think he's a bit too tall for Yoda and much too short for Darth Vader — either way he'll look a little silly — but it goes much, much deeper than that.

Does he want to be wise or devious? Old and shriveled or wheezing and disfigured? Does he want to use a green lightsaber or a red lightsaber? Would he rather fly a TIE fighter or an X-wing? Would he rather be powerful or shockingly nimble?

Does he want to teach future generations or rule them with an iron fist? Does he want to wear a cape or talk in backwards sentences he will?

What he chooses now could determine the direction his entire life takes; heck, the future of the entire empire could hang in the balance.

I tried to convince my son that, since Yoda is one of his possibilities, maybe another Muppet would be just as good. Not to mention less nerve-wracking and heart-wrenching. Perhaps Kermit the Frog or my personal favorite, Grover? He refused. Wouldn't even consider Elmo or Miss Piggy.

Two separate friends suggested I just have him go trick-or-treating as young Anakin Skywalker. Anakin, of course, will later become Darth Vader, but at one point he was a powerful Jedi in the service of goodness.

I thought about it, but since it would mean he'd have to dress as a character played by Hayden Christiansen, I figured that would be the same as dressing him as a cardboard cutout or Keanu Reeves.

Plus, this would still leave him in limbo and merely put off the inevitable moment of decision.

I know that my son is basically a good kid, but he's always been a little "¦ rambunctious.

I could see him being intrigued by the dark side, drawn to it. Tempted by it.

He's just 7 and I could see a future where he's a leader of men, a protector of the innocent, a beacon of strength, a source of wisdom. But I could also see a future with him as a ruthless power-monger and an evil genius.

He could go either way. We'll know by Oct. 31. May the Force be with him.

E-mail Steve Ouellette at: ouellette1918@gmail.com

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