Like many parents, I have eaten far more Milk Duds, Baby Ruths and Skittles than I probably should have since Halloween night. If only healthier, more protein-rich snacks were more commonly given out to trick-or-treaters (and the parents who help themselves to what their kids collect).
I’m guessing it was meant as a joke, but one Twitter user’s suggestion on a trick-or-treat offering has received a lot of attention.
On Halloween, “Steven” posted on Twitter a nice picture of Foster Farms rotisserie chicken and stated he was “giving out rotisserie chickens to trick-or-treaters tonight.” As of the morning of November 3, that tweet had been re-tweeted 22,000 times and liked by 24,000 users. (Beware: Some profane language is used in some responses to the tweet.)
Not such a bad idea
The thought of dropping a rotisserie chicken into a youngster’s trick-or-treat bag or plastic pumpkin may seem absurd and the image of seeing a kid’s reaction to such a treat is quite funny, but maybe something can be done here.
In the small community in which I reside, there is a man named J.W. whose family is well-known locally for their kindness and community involvement. Everyone likes that family, and their house is a must on most local people’s Halloween itinerary.
Each Halloween night, you can see their house decorated in a friendly, never scary Halloween motif. You will see J.W. on his porch with his barbecue grill, preparing hot dogs. Every person who comes to J.W.’s house is offered a hot dog, whether it is a costumed child or a parent walking along. His wife, meanwhile, is on the other side of the porch with a bowl of hot apple cider to give thirsty and sometimes chilly trick-or-treaters something to drink. That leaves one of their adult children to give out the candy.
J.W.’s wife once told me that he views cooking hot dogs for everyone his “tithe” to the community.
I realize not everyone is fortunate enough to live in a small town where nearly everyone knows and trusts you, but I think a lot of us could take a cue from J.W.’s family and do a little something extra next Halloween.
And why not run with Steven’s idea posted on Twitter? It may not be feasible to give away full rotisserie chickens, but it might be to offer pieces of grilled chicken.
The turkey industry has Thanksgiving and the egg industry has Easter, so maybe the broiler chicken industry could benefit from Halloween.
