Reverse Trick or Treating
Knock…
Knock…
Trick or Treat!!!
One of our most cherished family traditions doesn’t have anything to do with Christmas, birthdays, or Thanksgiving, like most traditions do. It’s actually a Halloween Tradition. We go reverse trick or treating.
Reverse trick or treating is where we dress up and go to friends, neighbors and family knocking on their doors and giving them the treat.
It gives us an excuse to wear our costumes a few more times throughout October (or numerous costumes). But the best part is the giving!
Halloween is even more of a “Give ME” oriented holiday than Christmas. This tradition changes that.
We start October by making a list of families that we would like to trick or treat. We always try to squeak in a few that we don’t see often or who live a little farther away. We make a list and then try to go out at least once each week through October. We pile into the car with a book on CD (Harry Potter is a favorite) and go through our list. Each stop usually ends up turning into a 30 minute visit or more but everyone goes away happier and feeling a little more loved.
Sometimes we make treats and do plates of cookies, other times we buy bags of candy to pass out. The kids get to pick either way. We have a special Halloween bowl that we keep filled with Halloween candy just for reverse trick or treating. They kids stay out of it because they know it’s for family night and they usually get a piece on the way home after making the rounds anyways.
This is actually a really fun activity to do all year round, which just makes the trick and the treat that much sweeter. I used to do this as a teenager with my church youth group, along with Caroling in July. It also works great for Valentines Day.
Traditions are what bring strength to our families and our kids. They teach values and priorities. Our traditions define us. So here’s to a sweet family tradition that teaches kids to look beyond themselves, to serve and connect with others, and to discover that it’s sweeter to give than to receive.
Happy Halloween!
Thank you for this great article!
It’s important to emphasize that selfishness and attention are not bad things, but it’s helpful to balance those with selflessness and giving to others. Teach your children how to receive encouragement and kindness, which will equip them in how to treat others the same way. Perhaps adopt the recently popular idea of only receiving four gifts on holidays: “something I want, something I need, something I wear, and something I read.” Remember that reverse holidays are a valuable way to encourage generosity and kindness towards others, not a way to punish your kids or hurt them.