The evening of Halloween poses a whole different set of the fears for parents then the typical gruesome mask knocking at the front door. It’s a time when teenagers start to voice their independence and wanting to trick-or-treat with their friends without any adult supervision.
I must tell you that as a parent of a teenager, when I was approached with this dilemma, the image of Michael Myers had flashed into my mind, sending me into total over-protective mode and wanting to respond “Absolutely not!” to his request. But as the image faded and I relaxed my stance a bit, I did recall back into my own experience as a young teen and remembering how excited I was on my first Halloween alone with my friends. However, we do live in different times than from my long-since teenage years, but that shouldn’t sway our decision, just alter the game plan a little bit.
Therefore, you should talk to your teenager about the rules and risks ahead of time. Here are some ideas that you can discuss in order to assure your teenager’s safety:
- Make arrangements well in advanced for the drop off and pickup location and times. The best option for a location is for it to be at a parent’s home and be sure you have a contact number in the event you are running late for the pickup. Stress that your teenager is to wait inside the home for you. Ideally, offer your home as an option if you enjoy the company.
- Make sure your teenager has arranged to walk with a large (4 or more) group of friends that he/she knows personally. Stress on the importance of staying together in a group at all times.
- Have advanced knowledge of your teenager’s whereabouts. Make sure you have the names of the streets they are intending to visit.
- Stress the dangers of walking in the middle of the street, walking in dark areas or taking short cuts through dark alleyways and woods and there are NO EXCEPTIONS for entering any unknown home or car.
- Remind him/her of the very basic rule of Halloween, not to take or consume any homemade treats or fruits unless he/she knows the giver personally. (i.e. a well-known neighbor, friend or relative)
- Provision your teenager with a cell phone and make sure it is fully charged. Stress that if anything comes up that makes your teenager uncomfortable, that he/she is to call you immediately. If it’s any type of an emergency, to call emergency services first (911) than to contact you.
Once you’ve discussed these rules with your teenager, since you have been relieved of your duties as an adult supervisor on Halloween, take the time to enjoy the evening for yourself. Since other parents of your teen’s friends have the same freedom, consider making arrangements to meet at the drop off/pickup house for an impromptu gathering of the adults.
From all of us at Donald J. Medeiros Insurance Agency, wish you all a safe and Happy Halloween! Please drive carefully!
Here at Donald J. Medeiros Insurance Agency our goal is to try to help our viewers by suggesting solutions for all needs. By no means can we address each reader’s specific concerns in every incident. So, we strongly advise to check with a professional to address your specific needs. However, you can also contact us for any insurance questions or concerns and we will be happy to help you. We are able to offer a complete line of personal & commercial insurance products for all of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire.
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