Horsham people urged to embrace the old Halloween spirit

Maybe it will be as simple as enjoying a plastic free, homemade Halloween with apples bobbing on strings and face painting or maybe it can be a little more meaningful this year?

As you glue colourful red and yellow leaves onto a cardboard mask, what conversations might you have together? It is us as parents who set the tone, and the latest science as well as ancient wisdom tells us that bringing curiosity and awe into our children’s lives is a sure-fire way to help them become happier.

Could they help you make African pumpkin stew (with peanut butter, coconut block, tomato paste and a touch of chilli) while creating a beautiful lantern as a by-product? And if the flame from the light inside it makes sooty marks, could that be a great way to explain about burning fuel releasing carbon? If that seems too complicated, remember that children readily learn that a dot of frogspawn changes into a frog. They understand circles of life whether biological or chemical- sometimes better than we do!

Invite children to shake sliced pears in a paper bag of cinnamon and dessicated coconut –the fibre means the natural sugars are digested more slowly (and cinnamon helps to regulate blood sugar). There are no plastic wrappers to be taken to landfill, no factories have been harmed in the making and you won’t end up with a screaming refined-white-sugar-crash two hours after the sweet treat!

The ‘cradle to grave’ implications of one-off shop-bought goods like a small wizard’s wand can be mind-mangling! With a little black and white paint, a garden cane can create just as much magic - and far more aware, conscious children.

For older children and young teenagers, sensory storytelling can be a thrilling experience: a darkened room with spooky music, a few peeled grapes as eyeballs and you’re away! A furry scarf makes a convincing wild animal brushing past them, a cold metal spoon, wet string, feather cobwebs, your most imaginative booming and ghostly voices…oh the joys of being scared in a safe space!

Facing our fears generally makes us stronger and builds our confidence. As parents our instinct is naturally to protect our children but being out of our comfort zone is super-important for developing resilience.

As this generation’s leaders, mentors, teachers and elders it’s up to us, me and you, to pose the questions and guide the debate. To decide how we would like things to be.