David Campbell: 'To all you Halloween Grinches — let it go'

Well, it's Halloween again, and you know what that means? A bunch of thinkpieces and opinions that it's "Too American" and "Un-Australian".

Boo to kids having fun.

It's not American, though — it's a tradition that dates back to the Celts in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The Yanks just perfected it and marketed the bejesus out of it.

I don't want to seem too defensive of something which, prior to kids, I didn't really care about.

So, to the people who will no doubt be fired up at this simple community, I have something to say...

It's really fun. Children love dressing up, and they get to walk around their community, be silly, meet their neighbours and get tons of lollies.

Sounds like old school fun to me, and not a screen in sight!

Now, my family love dressing up, and we take All Hallows Eve very seriously.

What will our theme be this year? Can we top last year's extravaganza? Where will I carry my iPhone in a Superhero onesie?

We have been The Addams Family, Avengers, Ghostbusters, The Incredibles, Justice League, and last year we were the Scooby Gang. What will this year bring?

We get together with a few families, since all our kids are roughly the same age. These other families tend to go the whole hog with their outfits.

(Oh, pig costumes. Good idea for next year, maybe?)

We catch up, talk about how they have grown from year to year. Then we always have pizza at the end and laugh about how uncomfortable this year's costume truly was.

Now, the quick-thinking parent can also convince their little ghouls and goblins to collect all the mixed lollies and save them for school and the week to come.

This parent, I won't name names, can then hide or "lose" the candy and chocolate in a different cupboard.

When the kids are exhausted and asleep, the same adult can crack the delights open in front of the telly, knowing you have convinced your children to basically beg for sugar... for you. 

So, to all my Halloween Grinches: let it go. Meet me at mine around 8pm and you can have all the free lollies you want.