Today is the Sunday before Halloween. SM Megamall has a grand Barbie party and it’s packed.

We couldn’t get it so we tried for the next best thing — Trick or Treating!

This was the best we can do provided that she didn’t want to wear her beautiful Anna costume. She would have looked like this if she was more compliant:

But I digress…

I think every mother should join the mall trick-or-treat activity.

For one, not every tenant gave away candy. So it was honestly an amazing lesson of kapal ng mukha (having a thick skin) and resilience.

I encouraged her to go to every single store and ask for trick or treat, even though there was no treats. Personally, I think it’s a great way to teach kids to ask… even when the answer may be no.

So she went into every single store in the area:

We went into stores that had nothing to do with kids or candy.

We even tried asking for candies at BDO.

And no, as per expected, they had no candy. Oh well, it was great to try.

And for most stores, the kid came away sad and dejected.

But for many other stores, there was candy to be had! Hooray!

Who knew that there were candies at Under Armour, but they did!

Trick or treating is similar to life: It’s full of disappointments and rejections. That’s why, it’s a great place to bring your kids to this mall activity.

But hey, if you don’t ask… you don’t get.

So why not ask?

There’s no harm to ask. 🙂

Mall activities like these also teach kids to be patient. Especially when you have to fall in long lines.

Here we are lining up for Toy Kingdom’s trick or treat activity:

Yes, it’s a hassle to fall in line. And sure the child does get bored.

But life is all about waiting for our turn for the rewards that will come next.

It’s not really about Insta-pleasure, but rather, good things come to those who wait.

Halloween is my daughter’s favorite yearly activity. She loves trick or treating even though she gets more tricks than treats.

But it’s also a lovely place to teach some of life’s best lessons such as:

• That you need to learn in waiting for one’s turn. Don’t be a bully.
• That good things come to those who wait.
• That it’s ok when people reject you. Sometimes even before you enter their store.
• That you still have to ask in an orderly manner, one store after another so you will cover more ground.
• That if you keep on asking, eventually, someone will give you that break you need.

See? That’s why trick or treating is so much fun!

Till next year!