Jack o' Lantern

Jack of the Lantern (a.k.a. Jack o' Lantern) got into trouble a long long time ago some place in Europe. One version has it that he was kind of a greedy guy and didn't share with those about him who were hungry, but who knows what he really did to earn being in some kind of hell for eternity. He knew he was assigned there for forever, and even though he may have changed (over the years, the decades, the centuries) and maybe even was kind and considerate of those around him, he couldn't get a pass out of jail, so to speak. Still - a resourceful and determined fellow - he didn't give up. He carved a big old turnip into a lantern, and used a stick to nudge a burning lump of coal inside. During the night, he wandered about the infernal territories looking for the trail to heaven.

In the United States of America, we carve pumpkins into Halloween decorations and call them Jack o' Lanterns. I've never heard an ending to the story except that Jack o' Lantern continued to walk the nights in search of an exit.

I like to imagine the original Jack o' Lantern one night found his way out. Maybe he learned the passageways of the cities and countryside so intimately that he became a guide for lost souls in and out of the gates of hell, his funky lantern a kind of dim and faithful eternal companion.