Dear Nearness readers,

 

Welcome to October! It’s officially fall now in the northern hemisphere, and with this change of season also comes one of the major holidays of the pandemic, one that usually revolves around lots of contact with strangers. We have so many questions, as we’re sure you all do: What will Halloween look like this year? Is it too risky for us to trick-or-treat? Will the costume you’ve been planning since last November have to debut on Zoom? Is a spooky slumber party still a spooky slumber party if you’re the only one attending?

 

It’s easy to lean melancholy when thinking about seasonal rituals that may not be possible to carry out this year but, as in the past few months, these limitations will hopefully push us to create new ways we can make Halloween season feel special. We’re excited to see how you all continue to adapt and encourage you to share with us work that reflects this. 

 

Last month, we debuted the Nearness 2021 Calendar, which is still open for pre-orders at this link. We’re proud of how these turned out: each month was designed by a different Nearness contributor and is a beautiful, colourful work of art that is guaranteed to spice up the walls of your room or (home) office. Since everything takes longer to be delivered nowadays, we encourage you to order yours soon so we can make sure your calendar gets to you before the end of the year.

 

This month, cook a decorative squash, invest in a bag of candy corn or a carton of cider, hole up with a favorite horror movie, and stay in touch. We’re looking forward to sharing Halloween-themed playlists, film recs and collage kits with you. We’re happy you’re all here.

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Anna & Alia