Category Archives: Rituals, festivals, holidays

“HAGS”

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: College Student
Residence: Long Island, NY
Language: English

Title:

“HAGS”

Context:

In yearbooks everyone writes “HAGS” which stands for “have a great summer”. This was a more popular thing to do in elementary school and that’s where the informant learned this. The phrase has been used for many years and at multiple schools, it is a well known thing. This was the informant’s go to phrase to write in yearbooks.

Analysis:

Along with this similarly to the informant I also wrote this in yearbooks which illustrates how this has made its way to many different places. This is mainly used by younger children, it became tradition for my classmates and I to use the saying “HAGS” in yearbooks. It’s also easy to remember as it is an abbreviation of something rather than a long saying. Since this has become tradition it demonstrates how it is folk speech and how our language is tradition.

Song for Sick Children

Nationality: American
Age: 58
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Seattle, WA
Language: German

German text: Armes häschen bist du krank, dass du nicht mehr huepfen kannst
English Translation: Poor bunny, you’re so sick that you can’t hop anymore

Context: This is a Swiss song that H.’s mother used to sing to her when she was sick. She still sings it today and it still comforts H. H. also sings it to her friends. She only sings one line of the song.

Analysis: This song holds personal significance for H., in that it serves as a comforting ritual. When she sings it to her friends, she continues this feeling of care and community. Hopping is a bunny’s fundamental movement, so the bunny’s loss of hopping in the song emphasizes that the bunny is sick. It suggests that this culture cares about their children and sees them as full of life. This song is a symbol of enduring love and connection.

“If you do something, do it right the first time”

Nationality: American
Occupation: Student
Performance Date: February 25, 2025

MAIN DESCRIPTION: 

JPL: “ Back in middle school, I remember one time, I was just doing my usual chores for my mom. She always had me help around the house and one day she asked me to clean the kitchen. I wasn’t really into it honestly and I started rushing through it, just trying to get it done and over with to go back to playing video games. But then my mom came in, looked around and said, ‘If you’re going to do something, do it right the first time.’

INFORMANT’S OPINION:

JL: What do you think this phrase means?

JPL: “At first, I didn’t get it. I thought she was just being picky. But as she explained, she said that doing things halfway just meant more work in the end. I remember thinking about it after and realizing the truth behind it. If I had just taken my time and cleaned the kitchen properly the first time, it would’ve been easier than having to redo it all. It wasn’t just about chores, though, it connected with a lot of things in life. If you’re going to put in the effort, you might as well make sure it counts. I’ve carried that lesson with me ever since. Do it right from the start, because it’ll save you time and effort down the road.”

PERSONAL INTERPRETATION:

I understood what this phrase meant personally as I had also come across it growing up. My mom also told me this as I used to cut corners in my chores and other miscellaneous tasks. She told me that when I don’t put in the effort from the beginning, I end up wasting more time in the long run. I realized that when you get something right the first time it not only keeps you from having to do it again but it also makes you feel proud and accomplished. It helped me understand that working hard isn’t about being perfect and making sure everything is done quickly so you can go back to whatever you were originally doing.  It’s really about being purposeful and careful. This phrase stayed in my mind not only about chores and tasks but also about future friendships, choices, and my own personal development. If you decide to put your time, energy, or feelings into something, give it your all.

“Hard work pays off”

Nationality: American
Language: English

MAIN DESCRIPTION 1:

CL: “My dad was a huge role model to me growing up.He instilled a lot of quotes along the way that really stuck with me. One of the quotes was, ‘Hard work pays off.’ He felt strongly that you might have good luck at certain stages along the way, but your true success comes from working hard, setting goals for yourself and pushing yourself to do the best you can.  My dad always worked very hard in his job and his personal passions, and he instilled the same in us. We could decide what passions we wanted to pursue, but once we committed, then there was no quitting. For example, it was up to me if I wanted to play tennis a particular year or be on the debate team, but once I committed I was committed. There was no quitting at that point.  He never pushed us too hard, but he felt it was important for us to try our best and not look back and wish we had tried harder.”

INFORMANT’S OPINION 1:

JL: What do you think this phrase means?

CL: “He thought kids should be curious and go out of their way to entertain themselves, read, explore, etc., in their free time. To sit back and wait for others to entertain you and have a plan and decide that you are bored is only a sign of a boring person and nobody wants to be boring!”

PERSONAL INTERPRETATION 1:

I grew up with the same values and ideals and now I see how much they shaped how I approach challenges. As a child I sometimes felt discouraged by tough challenges but these sayings always reminded me that my hard work would eventually be worth it. I discovered that hard work is not only about the results you see right away. “It’s about what you create as you go on your journey.” These sayings still help me today and I understand them better as I get older. I work hard stay curious and don’t expect things to be easy. The amount of effort you put into your life will decide how successful you become in the end.

“No Surrender”

Language: English

MAIN DESCRIPTION 1:

DM: “My dad would always say ‘no surrender’, I would always hear it growing up and no matter what it is basically, kinda just like to not give up, always push through. He said this phrase whether it was school sports, etc. He would continuously say this to me so that I wouldn’t give up on my hopes and dreams. It was almost like his mantra that he instilled in me and I’ve used it ever since.”

INFORMANT’S OPINION 1:

JL: What do you think this phrase means?

DM: “He thought that if he told me this then I would take it to heart, which is what I did. I used this phrase as motivation for whenever I faced a tough obstacle. I think it means to never give up when faced with hardship. Also, that I should never surrender or at least give it my all which I did for my academics and my athletics in my life.”

PERSONAL INTERPRETATION 1:

JL: I never really understood the meaning of “no surrender” as my parents never said it to me growing up. But I think I’ve definitely used this phrase when I faced my own challenges. It became a reminder to push through difficult moments instead of giving up. I believe I have used this phrase when I faced my own obstacles.I feel like I’ve instilled this mantra in my life as I keep going during tough times instead of quitting. I see how this way of thinking has benefited me in school sports and everyday life. It’s a simple idea that drives me to keep pushing forward and stay strong no matter what difficulties come my way.