TASK #1: FALL & HALLOWEEN MEMORIES.
OPTION 2.
She was born only ten minutes before the beginning of Fall, a true disappointment. For as long as she can remember, it had always been her favourite season. Colourful tree leaves, ridiculous coats in the 1990s and the scent of apple pies filled her with a joy impossible to describe. When the hot summer days would fade away, young Fleur (her parents always nicknamed her Fleur, which is French for flower) was at her happiest. There was nothing that comforted her more than Fall weather. She was lucky to have a large bay window in her bedroom, so she could sit nearby and let the evolution of nature inspire her. She collected leaves, placing them in between pages of colouring books, magazines or homework. She always had one on her, so she would remember this wonderful season when her parents had to travel for work. She enjoyed Fall in New York City and in Vancouver, in Paris too. She hated it when she followed her parents to California. She missed the chilly wind and relaxing raindrops.
Nothing competed with spending Fall in Québec. The Marathi’s had one specific tradition: they would always take an entire week off work, drive to a cabin outside of Montréal, stock up on marshmallows, crackers, chocolate, cocoa powder and apples. They would bake together, sing and dance. They would walk around the forest. They would enjoy the silence and peace of nature, compared to their busy lives in the city. Countless times, Flora asked her parents if they could move there instead. She was intrigued by small towns, but they were right, she would get bored of them very fast.
In 2016, somewhere around her birthday, Flora and Samuel travelled back to Canada to experience this family tradition together. It was the happiest the both of them had ever been. Samuel knew that one day when he found Florence standing on the balcony, watching the sun rise and shine over the red, orange and yellow trees that there was nothing in this world he loved more than this woman. It took him a couple of months to actually get on one knee, but he had asked the permission to do so from her parents during this week out of town. It was also at that moment he knew they would have a Fall themed wedding, because he could understand the impact of this season on Florence. It was almost mystical. Her birthday did not mean much, she did not feel wiser or prepared for more mature changes. She went through this process while leaves fell to the ground until trees were nothing but branches covered with delicate snowflakes.
If fall, as a season, was her favourite time of the year, Halloween never was. Flora, as a kid, did not get to go trick or treating. Her parents found it pointless, since she could wear costumes on any other days of the year and she only had to bat her eyes to get all the candies she could dream of.They decorated their house, only so they could give candies to other kids around. Generousity, that was one of the most important values in the Marathi household. At school, she would be one of the only kids who did not dress up. She felt out of place, quite obviously, but she grew tired of vampires and other silly and effortless costumes. She would spend the whole month of October doodling costumes in her notebooks instead of paying attention in class. Her grades never really suffered, but she held a grudge against her parents for never dressing her up as a pumpkin when she was a baby. They missed a good family photoshoot opportunity, truly.
Now, onto the costumes... She would dress up for Halloween parties, back in New York. She never put too much thought into it. Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Marilyn Monroe... She went for big dresses, for classical makeup and for looks that would inevitably turn heads. It depended on the parties, that was for sure. If they were formal, she put extra efforts into looking as elegant as possible (most likely because there would be photographers everywhere and she did not want to disappoint her parents). On the opposite of the spectrum, if she was with friends and colleagues for a production she was working for, she turned heads for other reasons. Don’t get me wrong, Florence does not like to provoke. Only, she can get very confident in herself and showing skin never bothered her. Her favourite thing was to dress up as important historical figures. Athena and Cleopatra were her best work, in her own humble opinion. She made the costumes herself, leaving very little to imagination. It weas always done with dignity and taste. She did not mind, and it was not like people were sober enough to remember. Everybody had a good time, and she sure did enjoy looking like powerful women from Antiquity. If she were to pick one more fierce woman, she would go for Mata Hari, or Marianne (the free the titty lady from the French Revolution).
When she moved to Amory, she took it to a more socially acceptable and decent level. For their first Halloween together, as boyfriend and girlfriend, Samuel and Florence dressed up as The Corpse Bride’s couple. For their second, they went as Superman and Wonder Woman. The chest piece was probably a little intense, but for someone who only had access to the movie trailer, she did a very realistic job. And Samuel? He looked absolutely handsome. She still keeps a photo album decidated to their Halloween costumes.
She started dressing up again in 2019, this time as Jasmine. Very predictable, one could say. And they would certainly be right. She had the green, the red and the purple outfits Jasmine wore in the animated movie. She opted for the traditional one. It was only then she entertained the idea of dressing up like a Disney Princess for every year. In 2020, she was Belle. Her plans for 2021? Sleeping Beauty or Ariel, although she has no idea how to walk with a mermaid tail.
Some things never change. Florence still prepares bags of candies that she distributes to schools around town or to different daycares. She can put on her Jasmine costume in a heartbeat if she was asked to entertain children even for a few minutes. She decorates more for Fall than Halloween, but she never misses an opportunity to hoard adorable decor items in hues of burnt orange and yellow ocre. She also makes a pretty tasty hot apple cider! If I were you, I would not hope to leave her apartment after a visit with a slice of pie or spice cake, unless you like your desserts burnt.
