UTPA students sound off on Thanksgiving presence
Note: This article originally appeared in the Nov. 22, 2013 issue of The Pan American. The Pan American was the student newspaper at my former university, The University of Texas - Pan American, where I got into writing. Ultimately, TPA was shut down as a result of a merger with neighboring university to make way for The University of Texas - Rio Grande Valley and the new student publication did not transfer anything from TPA. Here's one of my articles for them that was saved thanks to the miracle of Google Docs.
Yarely Rodriguez was grocery shopping during the first weekend of November at her local Wal-Mart on University Drive, when she came across a surprising sight.
In the middle of an aisle sat the store’s offering of Thanksgiving-themed items strewn about on a small table, such as pumpkins and pecan pies. Behind that table, however, was a plethora of Christmas-themed goodies, ranging from decorated sugar cookies to wreaths and more.
Upon further inspection, the English major also noticed Christmas music playing over the speakers store-wide and Wal-Mart customers receiving plastic bags for their groceries with the words “Happy Holidays” written on them in festive green and red letters.
The 25-year old junior said she was annoyed by the fact that stores were already displaying their Christmas items, and that customers were already shopping for a holiday not due to arrive for another five weeks.
“It’s insane. We haven’t even finished celebrating Thanksgiving,” she said. “It’s as if people are abandoning the one holiday that does not revolve around material possessions.”
The holiday is important for Rodriguez because two of her family members are corporate electricians whose jobs have them traveling the country for business purposes. Thanksgiving is the only holiday when they’re guaranteed to be able to visit.
“It’s an emotional holiday for me and my family,” Rodriguez explained. “We can truly be thankful for what we have. It’s enough to share food and spend time with family and friends without feeling an obligation of doing anything else, like buying gifts.”
However Karen Camacho, Rodriguez’s roommate, is enthusiastic when it comes to Christmas. She has her Pandora station set up to play nothing but Christmas music in order to “get into the holiday spirit.”
Camacho explained that she loves the Yuletide holiday so much that last year she adorned her room with stockings and didn’t take them down until mid-June.
“When you think of Thanksgiving, it’s all about family,” the 19-year-old biology major said. “You have to spend time with them, but not everyone likes their family. In Christmas, you can also spend it with friends and everything is so pretty. The holiday has so much stuff to offer, like themed movies, television specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas and some fabulous decorations.”
David Melow, a 23-year-old cashier at the Walmart on University Drive sees why stores would start selling Christmas items so early.
“There’s not really that much in terms of Thanksgiving decorations and music in the first place,” the marketing major said. “I can understand why stores would pump out so much Christmas at this time; it’s one of their biggest sources of revenue.”
According to the National Retail Federation, holiday sales for 2012 totaled nearly $580 billion, an increase of more than four percent from the previous year. This represented nearly 20 percent of total industry sales for the year.
Melow plans to decorate his apartment for Christmas this weekend and is excited for the upcoming holiday.
“Everyone usually says it’s their favorite holiday, and what’s not to love?” he asked. “There’s gift-giving, the ambience is much friendlier and customers are less bitchy. Everyone’s in a generally better mood and the Christmas weather is great.”
Shelby Lynn Gonzalez, a junior majoring in rehabilitation, has also joined in on the Christmas cheer by setting up a pine tree in her apartment. For the Raymondville native, Thanksgiving isn’t a big deal, because she didn’t grow up with the holiday.
“My parents didn’t like to cook, so we rarely celebrated it,” the 22-year-old junior explained. “I’m currently living with my boyfriend, who grew up in Mexico, and he’s not familiar with it.”
For Gonzalez, Christmas decorations help liven up her apartment to make it feel homey, a mood that she wants to capture because she and her boyfriend only recently moved into their new place.
“I love the season. The lights, the colors, and the smells. It makes me feel happy,” she said. “Whenever I walk into a store and see all the Christmas stuff, I can’t help but be relieved and think ‘I’m not the only crazy person already celebrating it.’”
HECTIC SEASON
Elizabeth Song, owner of Confetti, a party and gift supply store located in McAllen on 5208 N. 10th St., believes that decorating early stems from people preparing themselves for the holiday rush.
“Most people want to get a head start on decorations so that the only thing they’ll have to worry about in December is buying gifts,” the San Juan native said.
Confetti offers a limited amount of Thanksgiving items, such as wreaths and baskets, but according to Song, those products don’t sell as well as Christmas-themed decorations.
“Thanksgiving is sandwiched between Halloween and Christmas; two of our biggest holidays,” Song explained. “Some people just don’t focus on it because they need a breathing room to warm up for how hectic Christmas is.”
Yarely Rodriguez said she understands how chaotic Christmas can be and offered advice for people starting to worry about the holiday.
“Stop. Take a deep breath and take a look at your calendar,” she said. “Cherish what you have that money can’t buy and realize that Christmas is still over a month away. There’s a time to worry about that, but that time is not right now.”
