It's early December. I am the Director of Human Resources of a large electronic components manufacturer in San Diego, CA.
I have just finished finalizing the schedule of paid holidays for the coming year. The entire senior management group has reviewed and approved it. I make the required number of copies for the managers and supervisors of the clerical and assembly departments. I walk around and distribute them. I return to my office only to find two very fidgety production floor supervisors.
They greet me politely, ask my permission to enter -
I willingly grant them entry and before we can sit down one of them says, in a shaky voice, "Why don't we have the 4th of July off?"
Me: Whoooaa! That can't be right. Really, I forgot that?
"Yes, sir. It is not written here, anywhere"
Me: This, I have to see. Show me.
"Here, sir. See - Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, etc. Why no 'Fourth of July' holiday next year?"
No, I did not laugh; I didn't roll my eyes; I did not even change my tone of voice. I was talking to first generation Americans for whom "Independence Day" had no significant meaning.
I invited them to have a seat, a cup of coffee and asked them to give me a moment to tell them something. I then explained to them that Independence Day is the Fourth of July. I then asked them for a moment of patience while I made a small change to the posting for the general public,
"4th of July, Independence Day."
Many of them could file that in case the question came up in the naturalization interview that many of them would be preparing to face in the year to come.
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