On Halloween we shouted “Trick or Treat”
And held out plastic pumpkins for our loot.
We’d say our thank-you’s nicely and we’d scoot
To neighbors’ houses farther down the street.
November 1 we would be off from school;
We’d sit in heavy sweaters hearing Mass
For all the saintly dead who earned their pass
To Paradise, Jerusalem the jewel.
Now All Souls’ Day I linger late in bed;
November winds torment the weary trees.
I listen to them groan. My obsequies
Are haunted by my much beloved dead.
November mirrors everyone who grieves,
But Easter will return with April’s leaves.
Dear Reader,
Can I be direct with you?
War abroad. Socialists on the rise. AI upending human life. Endless uproar online. The modern attention economy doesn’t want readers — it wants users enslaved to the tyranny of the present.
First Things is the antidote: literary excellence, timeless truths, and a fixed point of reference in a culture that has lost its bearings.
But we can’t do it without readers like you.
Our goal: Raise $150,000 by November 1 to sustain First Things in the year ahead.
Your gift anchors readers in the permanent things.
Make your Fall Campaign gift now using the button below.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Giovanni Del Piero, Director of the Editor’s Circle, at gdelpiero@firstthings.com or 212-627-1985.
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