Halloween had arrived, and my grandchildren were anxious for evening to approach so that they could go trick or treating. I'd just moved to small-town Montana from big-city Texas, so I did the worry-wart thing and warned the kids about the dangers of talking to strangers, going into strange houses, and walking in dark areas of the neighborhoods. Their parents were going with them, of course, so the talk was for the parents as well as the grandkids (because as a parent, you need to protect your own kids, too, right?). Everyone assured me that trick or treating in a small, rural town didn't carry the dangers that it did in a large city, and that they were going only to safe areas anyway. And then I heard the words "Longhorn," "Pete's," and "Sportsman's," all normal, ordinary words. But they were also the names of three local bars. Surely the adults weren't taking the kids into a bar after trick or treating? Right, the adults weren't going to have a cold one as the evening drew to a close. No, they were taking the kids INTO a bar . . . several bars . . . to trick or treat.
Trick or treating in a bar? You've got to be kidding me! Child Protective Services would take those beautiful children away from their parents in a heartbeat if those little darlings went into a BAR to trick or treat. But no, I was a stranger in a strange land, and I didn't know that nearly EVERYONE took their kids into the local bars to trick or treat. My jaw was on the floor. I couldn't believe it. So, I tagged along to see how trick or treating in a bar could produce anything other than jeers and catcalls from the bar patrons. I'd forgotten that in a very small town, everyone knows everyone else, and a local bar in a small town is quite different from a bar in a big city.
The bars were full of Batmen, princesses, Darth Vaders, Snow Whites, ghosts, pirates, monsters, butterflies, bees, and other Halloween characters going up to bar patrons and saying "Trick or treat," while holding out a sack or plastic pumpkin. And what happened when a drinker was approached by a green frog or zombie and parent and heard those words? The customer would take a careful, interested look at the costume being worn, ask some questions about the character represented, and then dump change and/or bills into the child's sack or plastic pumpkin. Everything was very orderly, and the children were charmed that the adults were asking questions about the costumes. They were more charmed, no doubt, by the jingling of coins or the rustling of paper as the money rolled in.
As the evening ended and we headed back to the house, I had to admit that trick or treating Montana-style did appear to be a common practice for a lot of people. What else could explain the sea of costumes we saw in each bar? The customers seemed to be prepared for the kids, and no drunken or otherwise inappropriate behavior was encountered. The kids were polite and said thank you to everyone.
The town where I used to live had a newspaper column written by a local grande dame who reported on every social occasion that occurred. Whether she was writing about a wedding or a community club luncheon, the recounting always ended with the words "Chips and dips were served, and a good time was had by all."
Chips and dips weren't served in the bars, but a good time was indeed had by all.
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