Halloween is exciting and fun for all ages. The history books tell us that approximately 2,000 years ago, a tribe of people known as the Celts lived in the areas of the United Kingdom, Northern France and Ireland.

The Celts considered Nov. 1 as the start of their New Year and Oct. 31 was their New Year's Eve. The tribesman believed that on this night the world of the living and the world of the dead collided during the New Year's Eve. It was said that on this night, witches and ghosts prowled the earth and that the souls of the dead came from above and resided in the places where they had once lived.The Celts named this date Samhain and celebrated the night by creating bonfires and making animal sacrifices and wearing costumes made of animal heads and animal skins. The fires were to keep the witches away. They collected food and put up lanterns to welcome the ghosts and the deceased spirits.In time the Romans conquered the Celts and they combined the Roman festival of honoring the dead with the Celts' Samhain. As Christianity became a universal religion, Nov. 1 was called All Saints' Day, a day for honoring the saints and martyrs.Some people called this celebration "Allhallows," and the eve of the event was celebrated as Allhallows Eve. This event then became known as Halloween.The people of Ireland felt that ghosts and dead spirits roamed the earth on Halloween night and they lit fires to scare away the evil intruders. They wore masks and costumes to disguise themselves.Groups of Irish villagers would visit the homes asking for food for a community festival. Homeowners who gave food for the festival were thanked and promised a prosperous year. The homes that did not donate any food were cursed. "You treat me, or else I will trick you!"There is also a legend about an Irishman named Jack. He was not able to enter heaven due to his sinful ways and he had won immunity to hell because of his dealing with the devil. Jack was left to wander aimlessly over the earth with his lantern until Judgment Day.The Irish were afraid that a similar fate would befall them so they started to hollow out pumpkins and placed lighted candles inside to scare away the evil spirits on Halloween night.It is the Irish who arrived in America as settlers who were responsible for spreading the word of Halloween in America.Americans today spend an estimated $6 billion on decorations, costumes and candy, making it the second-largest commercial holiday of the year.The most popular children's costumes this year are Catwoman, Darth Vader, Evie from "Descendants," Star Wars storm trooper, Halo's Master Chief and Elsa from "Frozen."For adults they are Batman, the Joker and Catwoman, and Chewbacca, Princess Leia, storm troopers and Kylo Ren, all Star Wars Characters.So when the doorbell rings this year and you are about to open the door with treats to eat, "Let the force be with you" because you're not sure who you are about to meet.