By Natalie Hill
Centerspread editor

Homecoming. A tradition held with pride here at Coppell High School. Starting the year before while football coaches are figuring out the season, we figure out which unlucky team we plan to demolish for that fateful annual game.

A theme is deciphered for the week of festivities by the school’s cheerleaders. In recent years, the week consisted of Superhero days, colored days, funny hat and sock day. This year, however, “Through the Decades” is the theme.  It seems that it would be a fun process of dressing up as a hippie, a go-go dancer, an 80’s rocker and Bob Saget from Full House, but few and scarce choose to take part. If Coppell High School all time warped to these years where big hair and headbands were common, it’d be entertaining, but it is, instead, a goofy excuse to look through our mom’s closet, to find the “perfect outfit” for the chosen day.

Now I know that this is a southern tradition and is exciting on that one early fall Friday night, but I have no choice but to mention the mum and garter catastrophe. Huge (and I’m talking HUGE), paper flowers and streamers and bows and ribbons which do nothing beneficial for the wearer are lugged around on the Friday of the “big game”. Mums costing around $200 to have made are dragged, ripped, tattered and stained as the student attempts to make their way through the already crowded halls and stadium. I know for a fact that boys don’t LIKE having these ribbons weighing down their arms and getting in the way of their every day life. I have an 11 year old niece; would you like to carry her around on your arm or around your neck? That’d be cheaper, just as heavy and a more attractive way to celebrate.

And do I need to mention the emotional affects of this ridiculous practice? Girls, every year are left dateless and come to school the week of homecoming and feel completely mocked and scoffed at because they don’t have the mum, merely a status symbol that screams at the uninvited “HEY! I GOT INVITED AND YOU DIDN’T!” Internal pep talks are being given in the weeks approaching homecoming, guys and girls alike question why, who, what, when and how this whole homecoming charade will be carried out. And more often than not, these optimistic pep talks turn into pity-parties.

Now let’s do the math (since we won’t be able to see our math assignments through the ribbons hanging off of your body on the actual day of homecoming)…  There are 2,964 students currently enrolled in CHS and let’s say half of those make a mum or garter, and we’re going  with the bare minimum here. So, 1,482 kids will take be taking part, hypothetically. And let’s say that a mum or garter costs $75 (minimum). So this year $111,150 have been spent on this aspect of homecoming alone. Using this rough average over the past ten years, $1,111,500 has been spent. A little ridiculous, yes?

I could rant about this for another twenty minutes but let’s hit up just one more subject… it’ll be short and to the point, but the process is not. If you are intending to ask someone to homecoming that doesn’t go to CHS, be prepared to have their:

-Birthday

-Mother’s maiden name AND father’s middle name

 -Address

-Driver’s license number             

-Average income

-Social Security number

-Name of the boat that their ancestors came to America on
 
I don’t mean to bring down your homecoming spirit, readers. Homecoming is a fun tradition, I, personally, think it’s gotten out of hand though and small close-knit communities like Coppell get a little too into it. I’ll see you at the game and, together, we can cheer on our Cowboys as they lasso the Jaguars and show our homecoming spirit in the traditional way.