Halloween is a holiday defined by mystique, sweets, and twilight wonder–but having a set date for Halloween, especially when it falls on a weeknight, dulls trick-or-treating.

Halloween is, more often than not, a weekday. This year, it happens to have fallen on a Thursday, though its thunder patron does not lend his electricity to this day of the week. Thursday is one of the notorious school nights of the week, where many a child is burdened by bedtimes, alarms for the next morning, and generally: restrictions.

There is no good way to stay up all Halloween night without suffering from sleep-deprivation the day thereafter. School nights, though defined by revelry for many high-schoolers, are not ideal for socialization for many students. Halloween happening on a Thursday night prevents many students from partaking in the socialization, be it strict parents or simply fear of losing sleep. Halloween is a perfect time for making memories, but no memories can be made on a school night without the sour aftertaste of grogginess in the morning.

Frankly, Halloween’s date needs to be revised.

Halloween, though one of the “three big holidays” marking the end of the year, alongside Thanksgiving and Christmas, is not a national holiday. Schools and workplaces do not let anyone off for Halloween, but this is fine as it is a holiday between friends (rather than family for many teenagers) that occurs during the enigmatic hours of the night. But a national recognition of the holiday isn’t necessary for people to instead recognize it at a different time.

Holidays like Thanksgiving or Easter occur on a different day every year, with the former celebrated on the third Wednesday of November. This setup would be ideal for Halloween as well, being as no vacation is provided for Hallow’s Eve. Celebrating Halloween on say, the last Friday of October, would lend assistance to the sleep of countless teenagers.

The current setup for Halloween simply is too taxing on a teen’s sleep schedule, and also creates a trade-off as the “smart decision” of ending the night early also prevents potential further socialization. No matter how many Halloween school nights, teenagers will generally flock to their friends over caring about a consistent sleep schedule.

Sleep is the time in which a teenager’s body grows, and the brain’s toxins are flushed from the system. A healthy sleep schedule works wonders for a teenager’s blooming and a lack of sleep lends to exhaustion, bad moods, and other such irritations. A consistent lack of sleep correlates to worse grades, worse moods, and less growth. The average teenager is not responsible enough to have the foresight for these things, and will typically choose friends over health. But sleep is far too vital to teenagers, and the date of Halloween too trivial not to make the change.

For the health of American teenagers everywhere, it is best to switch Halloween to the last Friday or Saturday of October, because quintessentially, Halloween does not need to happen on a school night. Teens should be allowed to make their memories without the trade-off of sleep deprivation.

Don’t make teenagers trick or treat on a Thursday.