Ah, what a nice way to start a Saturday morning; After a tough week at work, finally a day of rest to kick back, read the paper. So as I open my front door to get my Saturday paper I noticed something yellow and slimy sliding down the front of the door. Looking down I see broken egg-shells. Hey, just what I wanted to do with my Saturday morning; thanks kids.
Now, I don't get this 'festival' - in fact no one does. The origins of Halloween are largely unknown however I'm sure it didn't originally involve blackmailing neighbours to hand over
sugary treats to avoid risking the wrath of children. Should well adjusted children even have 'wrath'? We only had one batch of kids knock on our door last night and they got a handful of treats each. When did the egging happen?
But this is a 'fun' thing for kids to do right? I agree, it is. When my kids are old enough I look forward to taking them out on Halloween night dressed in some strange outfit. It offers them a chance to have a kind of fun they won't have at any other time in the year and also gives them a chance to connect with the neighbours, something that seems to be becoming rare in society.
The question I ask myself is this: Do I teach my kids to 'expect' treats just for dressing up a little? Or do I teach them to do a little bit more? Maybe sing a little song or recite a poem? Why would I do this? To effectively teach them that they'll get a lot more in return if they put in some authentic effort. Do I teach them that if they don't get what they think they're entitled to it's fine to inflict damage on someone's property? I'm pretty sure there's a law against that.
Surely that's got to be better than teaching them that the way to get what you want in life is to disguise yourself and intimidate people with a threat!