Benin Edition
World Safe Crossing Day leads today's complete edition for Benin.
Daily Edition
Official observances, world days, local context, and everyday celebrations for people who need something worth reading, sharing, or talking about today.
A day for roads, crosswalks, signals, ferry landings, station platforms, and the care people owe one another in motion.
Canadian Halloween is American Halloween with colder weather. The costumes are the same but the coats go over them. The little ninja who spent an hour on his mask is now a ninja in a parka and nobody can tell who he is. The pillowcase full of candy will last until November 10. The candy tax levied by parents is real and it is not optional.
The night before All Saints' Day, when Vodun practitioners hold special ceremonies to honor spirits and ancestors. The overlap with Catholic tradition is not accidental in Benin, where the two faiths have shared space for centuries. Drums play, talc patterns are painted on bodies, and the spirits are invited to join the living for one night of communion.