This weekend was parents’ weekend at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I packed my bag, ran out of my dorm room and stayed in a Madison hotel with my parents. As soon as I walked into the hotel room, I felt an overwhelming sense of peace and serenity, something I have not experienced since I came to college. I took a big breath of the “clean” air, air not infested with the unique scents of hundreds of other 18 and 19 year olds. What a refreshing feeling. I could literally feel my heart beat slowing down, as I gradually began to decompress in this alternate world only a mere five minutes from my dorm.

I hurled myself onto the huge queen bed, fully appreciating the “clean,” fresh sheets underneath me. Wow, the fresh sheets. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever felt so clean lying in bed since I’ve arrived at college. They even smelled like flowers. How do sheets smell like flowers? OK, as soon as I get back to my dorm I am going to wash my sheets.

And the sheets are always tucked into the edge of the bed. I honestly forgot what it was like to have sheets and a comforter that were actually tucked into the bed. In my dorm, I have to go on a scavenger hunt to find my sheets that are typically tucked into some nook underneath my comforter at the end of the bed.

Don’t even get me started on the shower. That water pressure. Long after I was done the actual ‘get clean’ part of the shower, I just stood there letting the warm water run down my body. And then, only after my skin started to wrinkle did I get out of the shower. Waiting for me was a huge white fluffy towel just lying there on the edge of the sink. It felt like I had just had an exclusive spa experience.

A huge thanks to the “clean” sheets, amazing showers, and fluffy white towels for making me feel refreshed and as good as new. I walked very slowly back to my dorm on Sunday after saying goodbye to my parents.