Good or evil? Or a little bit of both...

It's Halloween weekend. If you're a Gen Xer, you probably have many mixed emotions that accompany this holiday. Some are nostalgic. Some are sad. Many memories instill anger, but often we're left with confusion.

We grew up with Star Wars and Darth Vader. Good and evil was clearly defined. So we thought.

Trick or treating was a fun kid-centered activity. We got to dress up as anyone or anything we desired. It could be a scary monster or a beloved celebrity. It was easy.

Then sometime in the 90s various states started to ban Halloween themed parties in public schools. Technically it is a pagan holiday, so many decided "fall" themed parties were a better alternative. Most of us kids just thought it was a fun time to get an obscene amount of sugar. Those of us from the Bible belt became keenly aware of the difference between good and evil, black and white, all or none. Good and evil can't both exist...so we thought.

By no means am I a Star Wars scholar. I have the basic knowledge and fear of Darth Vader as any other kid growing up in the 70s and 80s. He was scary and wore a mask. It was easy to believe he was a bad guy. He hunted Jedi knights. He wasn't on the same side as cute little Luke Skywalker or the hunky Han Solo, therefore he had to be bad.

George Lucas was so ahead of his time when he revealed Vader's true identity in his 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back. He took the good/evil concept and turned it on its head. We find out the heavy breathing masked James Earl Jones is Luke's father. Many of us didn't believe it. How many can remember school playground arguments about the dark emperor. He can't be menacing and have, not only a familial relation to our hero, but a parental one no less. Talk about some intense dinner conversations among households all across America.

Many believed it was a hoax or a lie. Good and evil can't both exist concurrently. American politics tried to clamp down on the matter. With the election of Ronald Reagan the conservative movement was reaffirmed. There was a clear line of good and evil. Drugs and sex were bad. Remember, you could die. That's what we were told. There was a horrible disease killing people. We all developed an intense fear of AIDS. People were dying. Promiscuity and drug use. There were those who ignorantly threw in homosexuality as a logical cause of this heinous disease.

Then came MTV in 1981 and Michael Jackson's global best selling album of all time in 82, the beloved Thriller. We all loved this disco-funk horror themed anthem. Race, creed, religion didn't matter. Everyone wanted to moonwalk wearing a red leather jacket. In Jackson's video he transforms into a werewolf and a zombie, and yet we all wanted to dress and dance like him. So much for good and evil Halloween costumes. Little kids all across the nation were dressing as zombies and giving their best imitation of Jackson. I guess at some point many of us accepted the juxtaposition of dark and light. I'm not sure who had the biggest effect on pop culture. Was it the ingeniousness of George Lucas suggesting parents are not perfect and could be both good and bad, or was it Michael Jackson's brazen dancing?

Looking back, I can understand why this season can be confusing. Wouldn't it be easier to assume there are clear and defined categories of good and evil. Fortunately, like Luke, most of us Gen Xers have grown to realize there is dark/light and good/evil in everyone - even our parents. And honestly, when I really think about it that makes me happy inside. The world is a big place. If the sun and moon can both exist within the same twenty four hour period then I'd dare say we can all have a little good and bad in each of us. I'd even say individualism and the contrast it creates is what makes us beautiful. Personally, I can sleep easier knowing, these glorious oppositional forces can exist simultaneously. It's what I call badassness.