No Trick Or Treat? Get Creative To Celebrate Halloween Safely
T
he tradition originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints. Soon, All Saints Day incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows Eve, and later Halloween. Over time, Halloween evolved into a day of activities like trick-ortreating, carving jack-o-lanterns, festive gatherings, donning costumes and eating treats. It is one the most awaited days of the year for kids who get to have loads of candy without any restrictions. But, this year the scariest thing on Halloween night will not be people dressed up in costumes to scare you off, but, it will be the invisible threat of COVID-19, and adults and children should change their plans to minimize that danger, according to new guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The top U.S. health agency issued a new set of coronavirus safety recommendations on its website in what it described as a “supplement” to existing safety measures in various states and cities. The guidelines are some of the first to emerge on a national level ahead of the Halloween season in the United States and Canada. “Many traditional Halloween activities can be high-risk for spreading viruses,” the agency says on its website. “There are
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several safer, alternative ways to participate in Halloween.” The CDC is urging people to avoid some of the most beloved traditions of the spooky season, including trick-or-treating and indoor costume parties, due to the “high risk” they pose for spreading the virus. It’s also labelled haunted houses, hayrides with strangers, fall festivals outside your community, drinking and “trunk or treating” as higher-risk activities during the pandemic. (Trunk-or-treating involves handing out candy from the trunk of a car). The CDC recommended several lower-risk activities for celebrating the holiday with people in your immediate household, including carving pumpkins, watching movies and holding candy scavenger hunts. The agency also described some activities that are moderately risky, such as attending an outdoor costume party in a mask, conducting one-way trick-ortreating and visiting haunted forests while maintaining more than two meters of space from others. So, keeping all the risk factors in mind, it is only advisable to be careful, cautious and indulge in the fun but also follow all the precautions ensuring maximum safety. We hope you enjoy all these festivals, but, with love, care, and a lot of safety. With inputs from www.globalnews.ca
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