Halloween is a holiday that many Harding students look forward to every year, and this year is no different, even among COVID-19 regulations and concerns.
The upcoming holiday is one that is met with various levels of enthusiasm, but as for sophomore Claire Read, it is her favorite. She and two friends are planning to dress up as Kronk from “The Emperor’s New Groove,” and his accompanying shoulder angel and devil.
“We were going to be so busy with Club Week and other stuff, but then everything got canceled,” Read said. “We are going to decorate our cars with lights and blankets and go to a drive-in movie. I love to dress up, so I want to go in costumes and take pictures. So far that is the plan — to just enjoy everyone’s company.”
According to goodhousekeeping.com, popular pop culture-inspired Halloween costumes that are trending for 2020 include Carole Baskin or Joe Exotic from the Netflix series “Tiger King,” DC villain Harley Quinn and “Folklore”-era Taylor Swift.
Junior Caroline Sellers and her suite had more laid back plans and celebrated an early Halloween with a small costume party.
“We had Halloween cupcakes, one of my roommates made dinner and we even decided to paint some fall-themed crafts,” Sellers said. “We dressed up in costumes and ended the night with games and movies.”
While it is important to have fun and celebrate Halloween if you would like to, it is also important to keep in mind ways to remain safe. According to healthychildren.org, the best tips are to continue practicing what has already been encouraged this year: avoiding large gatherings, social distancing, wearing face masks and washing hands often.
Parents who have younger children are being faced with many decisions on how to keep their children safe while still allowing them to have fun and enjoy Halloween. Assistant professor of Bible and ministry Mac Sandlin said that he and his wife Jenni will still be allowing their children to trick-or-treat in their neighborhood this year.
“They won’t be in any enclosed spaces or in contact with anyone for very long, so I’m not that worried about Halloween activities,” Sandlin said. “They have been thinking about, like, ‘How will COVID mess up Halloween?’ but it doesn’t seem like it’s going to change too much for us. They’ll probably go with their friends and trick-or-treat in the neighborhood like normal.”
So, whether your Halloween costume this year has you saying, “Hey, all you cool cats and kittens!” or singing “Cardigan” or if you instead opt for doing something more low-key like visiting a pumpkin patch — remember to have fun, but to most importantly stay safe and healthy.
