Halloween gets a lot of hype as soon as October rolls around— and rightly so. As a perfect holiday that has something for everyone, ranging from pumpkin carving for the artsy to bonding bonfires for the sentimental, it lives up to all the expectations. Here’s ten reasons why:

1. The onset of Halloween Month (what October realistically is) brings pumpkin spice flavored everything. Subway has cookies, Krispy Kreme has doughnuts, Godiva has truffles, but above it all, Starbucks brings out its Pumpkin Spice Lattes, a fan favorite that keeps humanity going during the colder, work-heavy months of the year.

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2. Halloween is an all-inclusive holiday for everyone. Christmas is for Christians and Thanksgiving is limited to Americans, but Halloween has no requirement. If there were to be a prerequisite, it’d be a love for candy consumption, and even then, those without a sweet tooth can just give out candy to trick-or-treaters.

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3. Speaking of holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving, Halloween is much simpler than them. There’s no elaborate and stressful feast with tons of family members flying in to judge your cooking, or a long gifting process that sucks up your money, time, energy, and that cool wrapping paper that you just want to keep for yourself forever. All you need to do is pick up some bags of candy from the store and dress up if you’d like.

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4. The candy itself. There is never another day where you can freely consume so much sugar sans guilt. And it’s for free if you trick-or-treat!

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5. Halloween decorations are both unbelievably cool and inexpensive. They keep along with the simplicity of the rest of the holiday— everything’s easy to hang with no assembly required.

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6. The holiday is all about spirit. Kids and adults alike dress up as whatever they want to be— whether that’s a superhero or a princess or a ghost. The masses of trick-or-treaters are always well-dressed and enthusiastic, and props to the adults reliving pretend play from their childhood. You’re never too old to trick-or-treat!

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7. The movies. Could you imagine a world without “Hocus Pocus” or “The Nightmare Before Christmas”? There’s something for everyone: “Halloweentown” and “Casper” for younger audiences and classic horror films like Halloween or “The Omen,” for those who are daring and fearless.

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8. Halloween is when Ledyard shines. Sure, places like NYC have gigantic parades, but cities just fail to encapsulate the spirit of the holiday the way small towns like Ledyard can. An annual Trunk-or-Treat is sponsored by the Parks and Recreation department, designed to ensure that kids can get the whole experience while staying safe. Many of the town’s performing arts students also volunteer at the annual Haunted Trail, which is a walkthrough that acts as a benefit for the Lauren Candler Memorial Scholarship.

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9. The holiday supports local farmers, who finally get to sell all their pumpkins. All their hard work then turns into beautiful masterpieces in the form of jack-o-lanterns, pumpkin pies, and unique decorations.

 

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10. Halloween is voluntary. If you’re of the belief that Halloween is overrated or stupid or childish— guess what? You don’t have to participate! Just turn off your lights and do whatever you were going to do anyways.

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Carina Wang, Editor-in-Chief

Junior Carina Wang is the Editor-in-Chief of The Colonel. She participates in Girls’ Tennis. Outside of school, she can be found volunteering her time at humanitarian nonprofits, running a study inspiration Tumblr blog, or avidly refreshing PowerSchool.