Dear trick-or-treating,
I’m so sorry for how neglectful I’ve been these past few years. It was never my intention. I promise I meant to spend some time with you on our special Friday night, and I have group chat receipts to prove it! Time just got away from me and somehow you fell off the priority list. The streets have been saying, “You’re too old for trick-or-treating,” and “That’s meant for kids.” I can’t lie, it got to my head!
I gave in to the embarrassment, and I lost my way. I should’ve done better. I mean, the whole point of Halloween is to gather as much free candy as you can from random strangers’ homes and have an exchange with your siblings at the end of the night. Those were our best days
Yet here I am, without candy, once again. While the Halloween gatherings with friends and scary movie nights are fun and have their perks, I can’t help but feel like I am letting my childhood slip away. I mean, legally I’m still a child and don’t leave for college until next August so who am I kidding, Halloween is meant for me!
I miss walking the flooded streets and seeing people’s faces light up as they realize teenagers still spend time asking for candy on Halloween night! I miss showing my parents my candy haul and seeing friends from school as I travel from doorstep to doorstep. To me, Rittenhouse Street (if you know, you know), is peak Halloween!
But gosh, here I am coming up with excuses for my absence in your life when really I am the only one to blame. I guess I need to come to terms with my reality and stop walking around eggshells, I’m growing up and the streets on Halloween night are no longer calling my name. It’s not you, it’s me.
Maybe next year I’ll see you on the streets of Madison, Wisconsin in the fall with my new roommates, or maybe our reunion will have to wait a decade or two until I am no longer spending my Halloween with teenagers who find Halloween embarrassing, but yet again kids who wait for it all year. Only time will tell, but just know, you will always have a special place in my heart. I hope you are well and I can’t wait to meet again soon!
Your old friend,
Willa Frillici •