6:32 PM CST, and only three parties, ringing the doorbell.

A little boy in glasses, with a lighted magic wand and Hogwarts robes, another in Army cammies, and one in some sort of super-hero ninja dress.

A very tiny toddler in a stroller, dressed as a cat. Her mother expressed a fondness for chocolate.

A small ninja, accompanied by both parents, who took one single packet of glow-in-the-dark Skittles, and was pressed to take an additional Reeses’ Peanut Butter Cup.

I was thanked lavishly by all, or by their closely-hovering parents.

I went out to look up and down the road for other TrickerTreaters. None in sight, although there are a number of dogs barking from other streets. Probably safe to sit down and eat dinner.

7:34 CST: A party of four, one dressed as a Star Wars Trooper, the other four as something indistinctive. The glow-in-the-dark Skittles are the most popular. As they go down the walk, one of them loudly chides the other three for not saying “Thank You”. There is hope for this younger generation, after all.

8:00 CST: Party of 5, mostly dressed as ghouls. Most want the glow-in-the-dark Skittles. I am running short of those, and begin to push the Reeses. All 5 line up neatly, take no more than two packets of candy each, and chorus thanks.

8:05 CST; Party of 6, middle-school age, most of whom , like the previous party are dressed as ghouls or ghosts. With only one packet of glow-in-the-dark Skittles left, the taller of the two children remaining nobly yields it to the smaller. Two of them voice a preference for Reeses’ and Twix anyway.
The last two packets of candy goes to the last TrickerTreater. Wonderful how these things work out.

I turn off the porch light, and take the iron-dutch oven– in which I have stashed the candy, inside. The oven, a broom and two pumpkins on the front porch constitute my Halloween decor. When I have gotten tired of answering the door in previous years, I have just put out a sign telling them to help themselves. Would that I could train Little Arthur and Morgie to sit on the pumpkins and glower threateningly— that would have kept the greedy from taking more than two or three candy bars each.

But everything worked out even this year— just enough candy, just enough kids.