To look at Herb Collins, you wouldn’t think
he was like that. A nicer, kinder guy you never met. But for one evening
each year … one little slice of time … he’s downright diabolical.
Every small town has one, of course. There
is always that one person who takes Halloween to its extremes of horror
and fantasy. We have Herb.
Everyone knows about his penchant for
decoration. Ever since he retired, his yard and house has celebrated every
holiday from Christmas to Amelia Earhart’s wedding anniversary with great
festoonation and an increase in the electrical bill from all the lights.
But on Halloween, Herb goes plumb nuts.
It’s a good thing heart trouble is rare for the age group who go trick
or treating, because Herb’s yard is a veritable booby trap of pouncing
ghosts, swooping bats that swing out of the trees, loud sound effects as
witches pop straight out of the lawn in front of children and cackle, and
porch-side demons that shriek and leap just as the kid reaches what he
considers the safety of Herb’s front porch.
It’s a running of the gauntlet that only
the bravest of the brave attempt. Herb says he hasn’t had a four-year-old
make it to the front door yet. But for the older kids, this is an annual
challenge, and one by one they leave the safety of the sidewalk to do a
broken-field run, often with screaming, until they hit the safety of the
doorbell. Once that doorbell rings, they know, it’s all over but the candy.
Ah, the candy! As if to make up
for all the screaming and terror, Herb gives out dollar candy bars. Some
kids have been known to carry them around for several days to show off
before eating them.
“It gives the little guys something to
shoot for,” Herb says, laughing. “And the big guys get a different dose
of demons every year so they aren’t sure what to expect.”
And Herb?
Well, he says, “I just have a lot of fun.”
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in Hereford, Texas. “We know it’s not just food in that bowl, it’s love.
And that’s why it has to be the best.”