The changes in Halloween

Reflections on how Halloween has changed throughout the years

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Senior Ian Salvisberg and Junior Marin Nielsen spend Halloween at the Young Life Halloween party.

The Halloween tradition is a legacy that has passed down from generation to generation. People have been celebrating it for over two thousand years, and the holiday has become a treasured custom all around America and has even spread to other countries. However, it changes quite a bit as you grow up.
When kids are younger, it’s all about the candy and the sugar crash that follows. They spend weeks planning their costumes and trying to find the perfect neighborhood route to get the most sweets. The whole family gets involved, and the prep that goes into this one night is endless. When the night finally comes, the children are ecstatic and jump with excitement. It’s like they have never experienced Halloween before, and it’s the most important night of the year. It’s all very exciting, and by the end of the strenuous hours of going door to door, their pillowcases and tummies are full. Suddenly the night is over and their dreams are filled with candy canes, gumdrops and Christmas. This is fun, yes, but it’s over so quickly that you forget it even happened once November first hits.
Although some may say that Halloween gets less fun as you get older, it most certainly does not. The holiday becomes less about candy and trick-or-treating, and more about parties and friends. Because of busy schedules, Halloween parties are on multiple nights and can sometimes be all throughout October and November. Not only that, but being older gives people the chance to be more witty with your costume, and even make a huge statement.
Trick-or-treating becomes a thing of the past, and usually if teens do it they get turned away at doors. This “eggs” on the pranking aspect of Halloween, and houses are covered in toilet paper and crazy challenges are accepted. People also have the chance to go to haunted houses, corn mazes, and anything terrifying without the risk of being scared out of their pants like they would’ve been as a child.As kids mature, Halloween becomes the annual night of mischief.
There are more opportunities to have real fun the older a person gets. With age comes freedom, and the chance to get out there with friends and do anything they please. Halloween gives people a chance to be creative and get to escape the real world for a night. Whereas, as a kid, it’s just one night for candy and it’s not exactly memorable. Those spooky nights spent with friends are nights that are remembered for years and years to come.