Trick or Treat

The last time I went out to Trick or Treat I was in the 8th grade. By that time it was a toss-up as to whether this tradition ought to be left to younger children. By the following year it was a no-brainer and all one had to do was walk down the hall at school and ask whether someone was going out tonight and the answer came back in the negative 100% of the time. It wasn't that the treats weren't good, only that our size and supposedly growing maturity made going out in a costume somewhat embarrassing. Our relative lack of enthusiasm for the phrase, Trick or Treat, also helped make the decision easy for us. Today I wouldn't dream of putting on a costume and Trick or Treating, or even going to a Halloween party. I have left those traditions behind and know that new generations will gladly pick up the torch and see them continued. Though I know most people do not share my opinion on this matter, and Halloween has become a huge holiday for adults. To each his own I say and have a scary good time! I wouldn't dream of bursting your bubble and tarnishing your memories of childhood marches through your neighborhood with a bag ready to burst with candy. Nor would I want to dissuade you from attending grown-up parties where all the attendees come in costume. These gatherings are harmless enough and produce good memories which linger. Just please don't expect to see me out and about in a costume. My days of dressing up as a hobo are long past and might appear politically incorrect these days. But a hobo was not a slap at anyone when I was younger. In fact, it was an homage to a life style from the last decades of the 19th century in our country. Hobos were workers who wandered. All we had to do in order to dress like a hobo was put some charcoal on our hands and faces, where some old clothes and stuff some leaves in our pockets. It was a fast and easy costume which was readily recognized by people when we rang their door bells and shouted our in unison, Trick or Treat. Have fun tonight.