Halloween Encounter with a “Tiny Pirate”: A Lesson in Boundaries

Where I live, the kids—from toddlers to high schoolers—are generally nice and polite. It’s night and day compared to the town I used to live in, where by age 11, you’d want to throttle the little punks. In the last eight years of handing out candy on Halloween here, I’ve only had one bratty kid, and, of course, it was this past year (2024).

This kid, dressed like a pirate, must have thought he was entitled to do whatever he wanted. After getting his two pieces of candy, he tried to sneak around to the other side of the bowl for a handful. I don’t know how it happened, but before I knew it, my hand had snatched his wrist so fast that I was kind of surprised by my own reaction. He was staring at me, wide-eyed.

I said to at him with the same tone I used to use when our dogs were misbehaving—deep and stern (I’m an alto, so it’s not exactly a soft tone), “Drop it!” in a way that left no room for discussion. He just stared at me, and I could tell he wasn’t ready to give up the candy. I repeated, “Drop it!” with the same authority. My son later told me I had the “mom crazy eyes” going on during all this, which explained why the group of kids stayed frozen, watching in silence.

The kid finally muttered, “I did,” just as I felt the candy drop from his hand and fall past mine. I looked him squarely in the eye and said, “Now you did. LEAVE.” I probably hissed a little at the end—after all, I was dressed as a vampire witch.

Still, the kid tried to calculate his next move as he backed away. He even attempted to reach for the candy again, but this time, I stood up. I may only be 5’4”, but I can be pretty intimidating when I want to be. I didn’t budge. I looked at him and said firmly, “NOW!” in a tone that made him nearly trip over himself as he bolted away.

The other kids just stood there, watching the whole interaction. Once I settled back into my chair, they all looked at me like, “Ooh, mama got mad,” but then they went right back to being polite and well-behaved—just like all the kids in our town usually are.

Honestly, I hope that little pirate doesn’t show up this Halloween. But if he does, I’ll be ready.