Visiting A Garden Supply Store: My Impression

Visiting a Garden Supply Store Name Institution Visiting a Garden Supply Store Introduction Visiting a garden supply store can be a simple endeavor or one that reeks of culture and a people’s way of life. For me, visiting a garden supply store meant nothing, and I had never taken time to consider what I can learn or deduct from being in a garden store. My first visit was like everyone else’s, and I could only see what was being exhibited and displayed on the shelves. I never expected to gain anything or even leave with something, but on this particular day, I walked in only to walk out with a different view and perspective of a garden supply store. While in there, one takes note of what people seem to like or grow but not on what these things say about a people. My initial thought was ordinary, and I could only see the seeds, but I started knitting and drawing patterns between what was being sold and what seemed to interest the people. Culture is embedded in things like food, and the types of joints that people seem to frequent and the garden supply store spoke a lot about the people. Me at the store Part of what was being sold in the store Your Experience My impression of a garden supply store was that it is a place where people go to get garden supplies. I never thought of a garden supply store as more than the above and no one could have made me believe otherwise. Before this class, places and things did not have stories unless they had some historical significance. However, the garden supply store did prove me wrong, and I realized how much one could learn about a people and their way of life from it. A people’s story is often embedded in what they do and what they engage in. Therefore, this garden supply store spoke a lot to me about the people and their norms. My experience was not near what I expected. As already explained, my visit was casual, and I never expected to leave with anything new. However, I came out with a different understanding of the people and what some of their interests were. One outtake from the visit was that while aiming to learn about a people, it is indeed essential to have an open mind and to gather information from even the seemingly irrelevant places or sources. From my experience, I can indeed admit that I was surprised mainly because of my initial and shallow understanding of culture. My perception of culture and what it entailed was limited, but this experience helped me to have a clear understanding and picture of what culture is all about. Link to Sociological Ideas The first sociological concept I choose is norm which can simply be explained as expectations about what people should do and how they should behave in society. I choose this term because it is quite relevant to this exercise. One of the things that can be described as a norm is homesteading. For a garden supply store to exist and thrive, people have to love or be involved in homesteading. Home preservation of food is something which is also considered normal, and many people involve themselves in serious subsistence farming. The other concept is culture which can be defined as the shared values, behaviors, or norms of a people. While walking to the garden supply st...