There are moments in every school year when the books are briefly put down and students slip away from campus for a few days to recuperate. Some students go away with friends and have an adventure. But many are more than happy to have a quiet adventure at home with their family. I'm usually one of those that goes home. Thanks to my crazy schedule, I don't have any other chances in the semester to really go home, so I love getting a couple days to be with my family.
1. You're imagining being home days (or weeks) in advance.
Home is suddenly a very close possibility, and we start thinking about going home and get really excited. We want nothing more than to not be losing our minds studying until the stars come out or stressing over exams. I want to just be home with my family. Talking with my mom, laughing with my dad, making fun of my brother, all of it seems amazing. Home is a magical school-free wonderland, and you want to be there now.
2. Getting there seems to take forever.
I don't know what it is about breaks, but the time it takes when you are traveling home (or waiting for your family if they are picking you up) just seems endless. Are we there yet? How about now? Now? Patience, you'll see them very soon.
3. You can't stop talking.
When you finally see your family, there is always the inevitable "how are you?" But unlike when you were a sullen kid and would just say "fine," the floodgates now open. You have been away for months and so much has changed and just, oh goodness, what hasn't happened and what isn't there to say? This will probably continue in waves the entire break.
4. Home cooking, please give me some now.
Whether or not your dining hall is good at school, we always want home cooking. There is nothing like sitting at the table with your family with a delicious meal in front of you. Something about home cooking is always a little better than other things, even if you are eating incredible food somewhere else. Maybe it's the love in home cooking. Home cooking is comfort food in its finest.
5. You are suddenly really tired.
I relate going home for a few days to having jet lag. You are happy to be back and you want to do stuff, but your brain is just a little sluggish or confused. Maybe this is caused by homework and not time zone changes, but the effect is still similar. All of a sudden, you just want to curl up and reunite with your bed for a little while.
6. So much laundry, so little time.
Ah, free laundry. I have been guilty of only bringing dirty clothes home in the past purely to wash them for free. While it is incredible to have free laundry facilities, don't forget in your joy of doing laundry when you first get home that the best time to do laundry as well is right before you leave. Don't go back to school with dirty laundry. That's just annoying.
7. The awkward moments when you want to be with your family, but also need me time.
Since you may only be home for a few days, its important to definitely spend a lot of time with your family. Why wouldn't you want to hang out with them if that's why you came home in the first place? But then you find yourself needing a little me time. That is totally fine, we all need that. The trick is finding a balance between sweet solitude and making sure you get to soak up all those moments with your family. Getting too much of one thing can make it a lot less enjoyable if you lose the other because of it.
8. Waking up without an alarm is amazing.
Regardless of whether you wake up at 8am or 1pm, waking up naturally is one of the most wonderful ways you can start your day. If you are like me and you still have things you need to do early in the morning on weekends, then waking up naturally is not a normal thing for you. So waking up naturally at home and feeling the wonderful calm of not having anything you have to do is magic.
9. You feel like a kid again.
It's wonderful to be back at home and be with your family. You feel a lot like a kid again. In some ways that's great, to be so relaxed and happy. But then you feel like a kid again, in the way that you feel limited. You can't walk to your friends' dorms and goof off, or binge-watch Youtube videos with your roommates all night while talking about everyone you know. While you love being home, all of a sudden you feel a little homesick. For school.
10. Time to go back to school.
Every break ends. We go back to school and get back to work. But even though we weren't in classes over breaks, we always learn a lesson. Whether it's your house or your school, both of them are home in a way. When you are at one place you want the other, and you wish there was a way they could all be together. Then again, it is your time away that reminds you how precious your homes are. Take the moments you have in both of these homes, and treasure them.
