Holiday season commences November 1. With cobwebs and pumpkins tucked away, wreaths and twinkling lights take center stage. Holiday tunes underscore holiday shopping, Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” and Bobby Helm’s “Jingle Bell Rock” blasting on repeat. This frenzy doesn’t spare the South High community: Various clubs have crafted and incorporated unique gift-giving traditions to spread holiday cheer, ditching the old-fashioned “gift and receive” for something new.
Trashy Turkey
Though gift-giving is an iconic Christmas tradition, you can also convey gratitude for your loved ones through Thanksgiving presents. With this in mind, South’s Wind Ensemble launched their latest tradition this year: Trashy Turkey, a spinoff of Scrappy Santa in which students exchange items they already own. Senior Olivia Gu, inspired by her youth orchestra’s Scrappy Santa, wanted to bring the same cheer to South: “It brought us closer together as an ensemble, and we learned that we weren’t just here to be serious musicians. We could also have fun together.”
After pitching the idea to senior Joshua Chang, Gu sought to instate this tradition, starting with Wind Ensemble. Pairings were made based on stand partnerships and shared instrumentation, bolstering musicians’ bonds with those sitting closest to them.
Secret Santa Art Exchange
Gifts mustn’t be ostentatiously signed, wrapped, and sealed to mean something. They should be tokens of creativity, dedication, and thoughtfulness; the gifting of art epitomizes this authenticity. The Art Club holds an annual Secret Santa to spark students’ passion for art by exchanging their own. On the first week of December, students pool pictures of their preferred characters and assign each other recipients.
On the Tuesday before break, the finished art is revealed, along with the artist and recipient, in a final celebration. With cheer and pride, students hone their artistic talent while bonding through their mutual passion and encouragement: “Doing art is enjoyable, but it’s much more validating when you encourage others to enjoy it…Instead of talking about grades or school, I could connect with someone through drawing something they like and chatting about it,” said treasurer Kaitlyn Wu.
White Elephant Book Exchange
Some would consider a cozy book and a cup of cocoa the ideal holiday. Last year, The Book Cafe launched its annual White Elephant Book Exchange, inspired by Instagram reels and intended as a more engaging holiday celebration. “Through this exchange, we want to give back to our members by gifting them a book we liked so they can enjoy a good read over the holiday break,” said Madison Hom, president of The Book Cafe.
Books are wrapped with a brief summary before being added to the gift pile and exchanged a week later. A bookish twist on White Elephant, students choose and steal from one another until all the titles have been unwrapped. This year, the wrapping will occur December 11 and the exchange December 18. All students, even non-members, may join if they bring a book. Hom hopes this tradition will spark reading at South this holiday break.
