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purple pumpkin on a porch
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Here's How Purple Pumpkins Might Save Trick-Or-Treating This Halloween

If you're planning on taking your kids out trick-or-treating this year and notice some unusual looking gourds as decoration, that's actually a good thing. For anyone wondering what purple pumpkins mean this Halloween, it seems some people are using these as a signifier that their home is a safe — as in, coronavirus-free — place to hit up for treats.

Parents everywhere entered the month of October with the question of what to do about trick-or-treating looming over their heads. Should the annual Halloween tradition continue even as coronavirus numbers rise in states across the country happen this year? Is it safe? The concern grew exponentially after the CDC released its own trick-or-treating recommendation, which advised against the traditional route of simply knocking on neighbors' doors and asking for candy, which is pretty much the usual drill.

At least, as everyone scrambles to make decisions about how to make Halloween special and safe for their kids this year, the new trend of purple pumpkins might make things a bit easier. Much like the teal pumpkins some people put on their porches to let families know their home was safe for people with food allergies, the purple pumpkin is there to let families know they're safely following pandemic protocol. While it's still a good idea to maintain social distancing even if there is a purple pumpkin, it's a lovely way to help keep the fun event going for kids who have already struggled through a difficult year of disappointments.

You don't have to paint a pumpkin purple either; you can simply cut a pumpkin shape out of purple construction paper and stick it to your window to give neighbors a heads-up that your house is safe.

For parents who are still unsure about what to do for trick-or-treating this year, Hershey's has come up with an interactive Halloween map to let parents track how safe their area is and even offers fun alternatives if they happen to be in a "red zone" for COVID-19.

Families are in for a very different Halloween this year, no matter where they live. While helping the kids have fun is important, safety is obviously the number one concern.

And these purple pumpkins will go a long way to ensuring kids stay safe. Also there's the added bonus that they will look super cool.