The only things left in my kids' Halloween bag are some tootsie rolls, a few suckers and a small bag of Cheezies. Halloween was a blast and every year I find myself around this time thinking of how lucky I am to be able to take my kids trick-or treating in my old neighbourhood. Over the years, most of the neighbours have moved or died and in some cases, the neighbourhood houses have been torn down, moved or burned down. But, some of the people who lived in my parents' neighbourhood as are still there in the same houses that I remember going trick-or-treating at when I was little.
On the surface, Halloween is a bastardized pagan-holiday that has become overly sexualized and commercialized. Really, Halloween is insane. Kids dress-up in sweet costumes and when it's past their bedtime, you take your hyper kids outside into the dark night and watch them as they go and knock on stranger's doors and beg for candy.
This year, like every year since we had children, we went trick-or-treating with my cousins who also have toddlers in my parents' neighbourhood. Or to be more accurate, a giant bumblebee (me), carrying a pumpkin (my one-year daughter) went trick-or-treating with a man (my husband) and his large chicken (my three-year-old son). The chicken was the unlikely ring-leader of a small pride of lions (his cousins) in Operation Cute for Candy 2014.
The chicken and his lion friends tried to go in every house that we went to until they got the hang of this trick-or-treating thing. After a few houses, the chicken would body block any of the lions who managed to get in front of him to try and snatch all the candy that was destined for another Halloween bag. One of the lions started chanting "Candy! Candy! Candy!" as we walked up a driveway. After some best behaviour reminders from the man and the giant bumblebee, the chicken let the lions also get their Halloween spoils. The whole crew of us, three toddlers, six adults and a pumpkin, lasted for six houses. Last year, we only lasted three houses so there is a marked improvement with the kids' stamina.
When I was a kid, I knew which houses gave out full-sized chocolate bars and every year, we went back. For the last decade, that house is my mom and dad's. This year they only got ten trick-or-treaters. My parents live in an older neighbourhood right beside an elementary school. There are tons of kids who live in this neighbourhood. Where are they going? To the "rich" neighbourhoods who then get an influx of non-neighbourhood kids who think they are going to score big. Some of these neighbourhoods with the big houses get hundreds of kids from all over the city. Meanwhile, the houses where they live wait for the trick-or-treaters and the doors stay unknocked. There were six jack-o-lanterns outside my parents' house and still no trick-or-treaters came. What's wrong with kids these days?
Next year, kids of Prince George, trick-or-treat in your own neighbourhood. You'll end up getting to know your neighbours and you may get a full-sized chocolate bar instead of a single tootsie roll.
