Halloween Should be Celebrated on a Saturday Every Year
It is my opinion that all public Halloween celebrations should be moved from the 31st of October to the last Saturday in October.
Hear me out…
Halloween is really only about one thing: trick-or-treating, and trick-or-treating is a kid’s activity. Why wouldn’t we make it as convenient for kids and families as possible?! Having it on a school night just adds a level of stress to the night that does not have to be there. It would allow people to throw their family Halloween parties (which usually revolve around taking the kids trick-or-treating) without having to shut it down early for bed time. Kids would then be well rested for another day of book learnin’ instead of in a weird sugar-induced, over-tired state.
And yes…I’m aware of the traditions that dictate why Halloween should be on the 31st. Honestly, I don’t know anyone who subscribes to those traditions, but I’m sure there are some. And that’s fine. I totally recognize those traditions. I say keep the actual holiday of Halloween on the 31st. I’m just saying trick-or-treating should be scheduled for Saturday! Martin Luther King Jr.s birthday is on a different day of the week every year, but we still always have Monday off. Do you always go to birthday parties on a person’s actual birthday?! Of course not…because it would be super inconvenient and not nearly as much fun…and fun is what Halloween is all about. It’s OK to celebrate things a few days ahead of time.
It’s also safer on Saturdays! Autoinsurance.org compiled some numbers and noticed that there were less fatalities when trick-or-treating happened on a weekend.
And I know there are some clutching their pearls and thinking, “Oh! If we change Halloween, what’s next?! Thanksgiving?! Easter!? Christmas?!” No…calm down. First…we already have those holidays off from work and school. Second, those traditions are held in much higher regard in our society than the fanciful Halloween. Besides, if Easter can move around, so can Halloween.
Most of our holidays have a reverence to them. There are lessons to be learned, important historical dates to recognize, and highly-regarded religious traditions to observe. Halloween isn’t any of that. Halloween is about pure, childhood fun. Why wouldn’t we want to make the most of that?
Hate me if you want, I’ll die on this haunted hill!
Do you disagree and think that I’m what’s wrong with this country? Feel free to email me at [email protected] or hit me up on Twitter @NickwithaMic to tell me how awful I am.