With Halloween just past us, I can’t help but wonder what happened to “trick” in “trick-or-treating.” It used to be, back in the old days, that when kids yelled out “trick-or-treat” they were actually asking a question. It was a threatening question. There was a real chance of vandalism if an adult or their treat was not appreciated.
Have you ever seen the old, Meet Me in St. Louis? The film shows Halloween in the early 20th century. The (unsupervised) kids seemed far less concerned about the acquiring of goodies and far more involved in the trick part.
This made me realize that Halloween used to be a genuinely scary evening where actual crimes by children were not only committed, but expected and tolerated. It’s true that the majority of the ‘tricks’ were minor infractions– kids just letting off steam–but still criminal acts nonetheless. In fact, many adults chuckled over their own Halloween transgressions.
Now we have the sanitized, safe, and commercial version of Halloween. Parents now buy pre-made costumes. Gone is the creativity, the possibility, the wonder of that evening. Gone is the magic. Also, long gone is the opportunity to be a bad little boy or girl for a night.
It’s not that adults have become overly protective as much as the world is a much more evil place. What used to be harmless fun equates to real risks in the modern world. Halloween is not really a fun, safe night anymore for either adults or children.
Now we have to inspect the treats for anything tampered because someone really does want to hurt our children. Homemade treats aren’t acceptable; there is too much chance of a creep adding something evil inside. Kids are truly in danger of getting hurt or kidnapped.
When I wish for a night of mayhem, I’m really longing for a time when childhood was a safe, good, and fun time of life. Until that happens, we can never allow our kids to be ‘bad’ when real evil exists.
Viewed 58 times by 18 viewers
