Trick or Treat or Fifty Years Without Happiness

It’s a shame teenagers are expected to lose their Halloween spirit upon reaching adulthood. Childhood joy and holiday enthusiasm become forgotten memories of a past life. Older siblings watch younger ones with envy, wincing at their energetic curiosity. Parents live out Halloween vicariously through their children’s lives — yet it never feels the same.

After barely a decade on Earth, children are told it’s taboo to walk the same paths and celebrate the same traditions they always have. At least, teenagers and young adults aren’t supposed to trick or treat in the same way. 

No more bags of candy filled from the generosity of a community. No more dressing up to scare the neighbors and voice a greeting for the first time in months.

Grownups are forced to become comfortable in their secluded towers while looking down on children scampering through decorated neighborhoods, questing for candy.

Adults need playful fun to help them remain active and find satisfaction in life, according to a 2013 study. And yet, the older adults have less fun. Duty replaces fun and devoting more time to work than living a full life becomes the norm, according to a 2022 survey which noted work-life balance skews toward work as people get older.

Expectations of responsibility and civility mold humans into boring creatures. Halloween is the epitome of fun for those who celebrate, offering a reprieve from the responsibilities of adulthood as it’s tied more to human imagination than nearly any other holiday. One night of showing off a costume to strangers and treating bags of candy as pots of gold while boasting and trading candy with friends and family. 

To break this tradition at such a young age is a travesty.

But can’t holiday zeal be found for adults in activities other than trick-or-treating? What about Halloween parties?

What about them? Sure, a Halloween party has brought a smile to someone’s face at some point in history — but where’s the passion? Where’s the limitless thrill? How can a person wear a scarecrow costume purchased from Party City, spend the whole night indoors and think they’re adequately celebrating America’s spookiest holiday? 

There’s no great chase for sweets if the candy is absentmindedly acquired at Target, where it’s shoved in a cart between protein bars and body wash.

It’s better to be immersed in the spiritual moment. Teenagers are steeped in late-October culture while many adults begrudgingly go to parties. They merely scratch at foggy memories with a heavy absence of eerie music in the background. Instead, they opt for the same four Halloween songs people have played since the 2000s.

Maybe the joy we once felt can’t be replicated. If we leave our high towers and go door to door searching for something more, the mist of Halloween spirit may dry, leaving us stuck in the crisp October air realizing some past pleasures are irretrievable.

Either way, it doesn’t hurt to try. Looking like Dracula for a day and taking on the neighborhood can only go so wrong. If an adult handing out candy sees a balding thirty-year-old man and decides not to open the door for him, so be it. Let them live in ignorance and never indulge in a whimsical attitude. 

If ringing a doorbell is too much, then at least accompany a little cousin or neighborhood rascal on their spooky scavenger hunt. A holiday doesn’t mean much if happy memories can’t be shared.

For those brave middle-aged trick-or-treaters, reclaim Halloween. Dress in the wildest and most imaginative costume. Instead of acting like a lethargic zombie simply trudging through the days, use this Halloween as an avenue to discover life not just in the holidays, but in every moment. Celebrate the 20th birthday with as much excitement as the 10th. Celebrate it all.