I remember in my early teens, that uncertain age when you might be too old to trick or treat on Halloween, which feels both shamelessly opportunistic & a little embarrassing, except that the candy is there for the taking! My best friend, who had a little scar at the corner of his mouth which made him look sinister, even as a boy, and I got the bright idea to knock on the door of a family of Vietnamese refugees in my apartment building, just to see what they would do. I know and I feel awful now remembering it. So we knocked on the first floor door and announced, Trick or Treat! I would be surprised if we were the first to knock on their door but you never know. They answered with big smiles and offered us packages of ramen. We protested but they insisted we take the ramen, smiling & bowing the whole time, so sweet & sincere, unlike us. We turned and trundled off, feeling exactly like the little shits we were, and yet amazed that these desperate people, living twenty to a two bedroom apartment, would be willing to so joyfully give whatever they had. It was a truly humbling moment that I had not thought of until this evening. Happy Halloween, whatever that means to you.
