Don’t get me wrong – I am a major fan of summertime and catching up with family and old friends after being away from my hometown for another year of college. But after two long months of living under my parents' roof and rules again, it’s time to go back. Coming home from college is one of the strangest, most nostalgic feelings. I’m an adult and used to freedom and doing what I please, but yet I am subject to house rules and treated like a child again the moment I walk in my familiar front door and holler “I’m home!”.
I have realized that practically nothing has changed in my small town in the middle of Nebraska besides me. College has been a wonderful change and has provided me with the intellectual stimulation I craved, differing opinions that have challenged my values, and the opportunity to meet people from different backgrounds that I just didn’t have as much access to in my hometown. The new friends, new professors and newfound passions and interests have all helped me grow and develop as a person and all became my new normal.
My home looks and smells the same, yet it doesn’t feel like the same place where I could always turn to for comfort, security, and reassurance as a child. I know my family enjoys having me home and spending time with me, but I still can’t shake the feeling of being a visitor or guest who soon will be leaving again.
Of course, being home has its fair share of perks. There is nothing quite like the feeling of sleeping in my familiar, luxurious queen sized bed after a year of an uncomfortable, tiny dorm room bed. Also, the cafeteria food does not even come close to comparing when my Mom makes my favorite, most tantalizing meal for dinner.
It is also a welcomed feeling to finally take a break from the poor-college-student-who-can-barely-afford-Ramen-lifestyle. Being home also means bringing in some income for myself and being able to save up some money for important things like tuition, textbooks and beer. Did I mention I don’t have to pay rent and the fridge is always magically full?
While summer means a much needed break from schoolwork, it can also mean being separated from the people who are a home away from home and an unrelated, but just as tight-knit, family for nine months out of the year. Living in close proximity to hundreds of people your age with similar interests and lifestyles creates bonds that you never knew could be possible. The freedom and excitement is truly exhilarating. When I am lonely or bored at college, it is so easy to just walk down the hall and see my friends or find something fun to do. When bored at home, I can either text or FaceTime my college friends, or sit alone and wallow in self-pity about how boring my life has become.
It is incredibly easy to create lasting friendships when everyone is in a new environment and has the chance to start over fresh. While new friends comes with new experiences and added excitement, it can also lead to the sad realization of how little you actually have in common with your high school friends besides being raised in the same town.
Overall, it is a necessity and enjoyable to have a three month break from deadlines, term papers and all-nighters, but I would still trade in all of the stress that comes with being a college student for the carefree and crazy nights that make it all worthwhile. There is a certain time for everything and I am trying my best to live in the present and make the best out of a less than exciting summer. I know I should cherish memories to be made with my family and the simplicity of living in a small town again, but a part of me still can’t help but wonder: how much longer until college starts again?
