I can almost taste the pumpkin spice floating around in the cool, fall air, and "Minter" is just around the corner with mint favored everything. All around the nation, everyone is gearing up for the holiday season. For many families, it kicks off with Thanksgiving. On the eve of my family's celebration of Thanksgiving, I am getting ready to go back home for a couple of too-short days.

Home means so much more to me now after being away for a while. It isn't just the place where your parents are or where your childhood house is, but it is where you are from and where you are know. Home is like your deepest, strongest root. Like a really big root on a one-hundred year old live oak that not even a hurricane can rip at. Holidays bring us back down to that place of warmth and nourishment. If you are blessed to travel home this holiday season, I hope you find some of these to be true or are able to hold on to them.

1. A love-filled smile bursting of joy.

No matter how long you've been gone, there's nothing that beats your Momma's ear-to-ear grin when she hears your footsteps through the door. Nothing will beat the immediate relief of a too-tight hug from Dad after he hears your voice in the house.

2. Being outrageously silly.

I don't know about your family, but when my brother and I get together at home, there is no force of nature that can stop our gasping-for-air giggles as we play fight in the middle of the kitchen or tease the other about who the dog loves more. (FYI Max, she loves me more, but we both know that's not true.)

3. Holiday debates

Everyone loves to brag on the dysfunction of their family, but really, it's that what makes the holiday memorable?

4. Notice the change.

Despite your absence, your little cousins still grow up to be beautiful/handsome teenage humans, and your family pets look a little grayer and move a little slower.

5. Somethings never change.

Even though you may have a few less people to cherish time with or your parents are the ones waking you up on Christmas morning, traditions still hold fast. In my house, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade still plays from the TV for hours until football comes on, and my family still has way-to-serious quirky Christmas sock rules. Tradition grounds us when it's so easy to get caught up in other things.

6. What's your major?

How's school going? What's your favorite class? How are all of the friends? You get flooded with questions, but truthfully, you love it. Your family wants to know about your life and how you are. That is a blessing.

7. Wondering how you were ever productive before.

I know whenever I go home, all I want to be is present. I don't want to worry about anything or study for my next exam. I simply want to get lost in the euphoria of nothingness and bulldog cuddles.

8. Should I eat that last piece of...?

As a friend and I were commenting the other day, we want to somehow carry our workout routine from the semester into the holidays because it's the holidays. Everyone acts like a bear storing up for winter around the dinner table. The most inevitable struggle will be exercising some self-control. (Can I get an amen?)

9. Putting the oven to good use.

On the flip side of #8, live a little and bake a pie or something fun! Baking is super therapeutic for me, and my favorite part is sharing the fruits of my labor with others. What better time to give than the holidays?

10. Love

Maybe it's all of the fond memories I have of the holiday season as a child or maybe its the general air of gratefulness, but there's just something about the end of the year that fills my heart. Many of us are so incredibly fortunate and are able to celebrate and spend time with family and friends. For those who aren't, let's reach out and extend some of our love and joy.

The holiday season can be rough for many groups of people. Many people cannot go home, are not welcomed home, or do not have a home to go to. I want to encourage you to care for those who are alone, hurting, or displaced. Consider it part of the holiday celebration.