Patch Masters - Bringing Halloween to Denmark one soul at a time.

One of the greatest traditions of Halloween is carving pumpkins. This is something a lot of families spend many hours doing. However, this is not just fun for the kids, but also a lot of fun for adults around the whole world. There scary lanterns have become so popular that it’s almost like a sport to carve the nicest pumpkin. Many people care the traditional scary face but you can also be more creative than that and carve different pictures, such as cemeteries, haunted houses or even monsters in them. As fun as this is many people wonder why is it that we carve these pumpkins on Halloween, is it just for the fun of it or is there a reason? To answer this question we once again have to go back to Ireland. There are many stories about this, but the moist famous is probably the story of Stingy Jack.

The Story Stingy Jack
Jack was a man of many traits, none of them particularly savory. Lazy, cheap, and selfish are among the terms often attributed to old Jack. To his credit, he was also pretty clever. But that's one skill that didn't pay off for him in the end.
On one particular night, quite possibly Halloween, Jack was living it up at the local pub. Being the sinner he was, it's not surprising that Jack ended up drinking with the Devil himself. And true to his name, Stingy Jack didn't want to pay for his ale. He convinced the Devil to turn himself into a coin, in exchange for Jack's soul.
As soon as the Devil transformed, Jack snatched the coin and dropped it into his pocket next to a silver cross, which prevented the Devil from changing back into his original form. Jack eventually freed the Devil, under the condition that he would not bother Jack for ten years.
Well, when it comes to collecting souls, the Devil isn't about to forget a debt. Sure enough, Jack and the Devil crossed paths exactly ten years later. Knowing that his time was up, Jack agreed to go to his new home of fire and brimstone. But first he asked, "Can you get me an apple from that tree?"
The arguably gullible Devil agreed, and as he was climbing the branches, Jack carved a cross into the tree trunk. Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice, the Devil's trapped in a tree. This time Jack made the Devil promise to never come for his soul again. Not having any other options, the Devil agreed.
As sneaky as Jack was, he couldn't cheat death forever. The day Jack finally died; he tried knocking on Heaven's door. Of course God wouldn't let such a deceitful man through the Pearly Gates. Jack travelled to the entrance to Hell next, however the Devil held a grudge for Jack's trickery and kept his promise to not claim his soul.
"But where shall I go?" asked Jack. The Devil replied, "Back where you came from!" The way back was very dark, so the Devil tossed Jack a single burning coal from the fires of Hell to light his way.
Jack hollowed out a turnip, and placed the burning ember inside. And ever since that day, "Jack o' the lantern" has been wandering the Earth in a state of limbo, with only that carved turnip to illuminate his path.
Back in the days when this legend originated, it was believed that wandering spirits like Stingy Jack could enter our world on All Hallows Eve. So the Irish would hollow out turnips, gourds, potatoes or beets. By carving a scary face and placing a coal or candle inside, they believed their unusual lanterns would ward off any roaming ghosts. These were the very first jack-o-lanterns.
Waves of Irish immigrants came to America in the 1800s during the Irish Potato Famine. They brought with them the traditions of Halloween and the jack-o-lantern. They soon discovered pumpkins, a fruit native to America, which are obviously much larger and easier to hollow out than a turnip. The carved pumpkin has been a symbol of Halloween ever since. And the rest, as they say, is history!