Halloween Costume That I’m Both Most Ashamed of and Proud

You remember hearing about the “Ghost of the Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts,” right? If you did, it would really make me feel better about myself with this story.

In case not—and it will become apparent you’re not alone—the “Ghost of the Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts” was one of my brother and I’s favorite scary stories when we were little.

I don’t recall where we first heard it—maybe it’s creator was inspired by this song. It was your typical campfire ghost story, one that always ended with a loud BOO or some other scare. But, it was the teller’s description of what the “Ghost of the Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts” looked like that set it apart.

One particular Halloween, I decided to make my own costume, a “Ghost of the Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts” costume. I found an old unused white sheet my parents let me use and grabbed my pack of markers.

Picking out the proper “greasy grimy gopher gut” colors—brown, red, yellow, green—I laid out the sheet on the floor and started to work. I didn’t know what guts really looked like, but I did my best and I remember being happy with it—even though it looked like a nursery full of toddlers spent hours scribbling all over it.

After I was finished, I cut eyeholes and now had my own “Ghost of the Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts” costume.

Halloween morning, I went to daycare before school and proudly put on my costume to join the rest of the kids. I knew it would need some explanation. I answered the strange looks and “What are you supposed to be?” questions by proudly declaring, “I’m the ’Ghost of the Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts.’”

However, not one of the other kids had any idea who or what I was talking about.

It was then I realized that instead of a creative, homemade creation of a common scary story spook, I was wearing a ridiculous, scribble-covered sheet with eyeholes. Quickly, I took it off, hid it away in my backpack, and pretended to have no Halloween costume that day at school.

I still twinge every time I remember that feeling of utter embarrassment that I felt that day after being so excited about showing off my creation. But, as I look back on it now, I’m actually proud of my boldness in creating a costume for a character no one had seen and only had heard of before—or so I thought.

I also appreciate that my parents—who had to know how ugly my costume was—supported me in following through with it. When I have kids, I hope I’ll support their own creatively-inspired homemade Halloween costumes and be there to encourage them to keep trying when their intentions fail.