Winter Break: you finally have your first semester of college under your belt. You’re officially a college student. You have your own life, responsibilities, etc. but now you’re going home. You will be quizzed about college by anyone and everyone: “Do you like school?”, “How are your classes?”, “How are your friends?”, and of course “Do you have a significant other?”. Still though, you’re excited to go home. You get a nice long period off from school, much longer than it was in high school. And on top of this, you have no homework. It is finally possible to enjoy a break.
Going home is always strange. It does not evoke the same feelings it did before college. When you go home on break, you know that it is now temporary and you will soon be headed back to school. You feel like a stranger in your own home, living out of a suitcase.
In college, you answer to no one but yourself, but now that you’re home, your mom is in charge once again. She has already scheduled all of these doctor appointments and planned for you to see every family member and family friend ever, and all of this is done without any time to protest. Rather than getting to sleep in, you are woken up early with a jam-packed day ahead of you. There is barely enough time to see all of your friends and do everything you needed to do. Your freedom is severely limited, and it takes getting used to again, especially if you don’t have a car. Coming from a family with four kids, being stranded at the house and without a car is a common occurrence, mainly for the babies of the family.
Being home is fun, until it isn’t. At some point or another, you will miss college. You will miss your friends, being walking distance from everything, the social life, and more. You will write in your group chat about how much you miss everyone and how you cannot wait to see them all soon. "Second semester is going to be amazing!”, you all exclaim. Syllabus week is will be a nice relaxed way to ease back into the routine. And by the end of break, depending on when you go back, most of your friends are already gone.
Despite all of this, home is where the heart is. It is always good to see family, friends, pets, and of course, sleep in your old bed. Eventually it is your turn to go back to school. As you pack all your things back up and say goodbye to everyone, and for a couple seconds you are sad to leave and secretly cannot wait until the next break.
