First day coming in, I did not expect that this place would become my home. Hearing from the upperclassmen about how connected I would get to Creighton campus does not make the idea very real to me. I mean, home’s supposed to be where I enjoy time with my family and not have to do homework. But it turned out that I actually dreaded to leave Creighton, even only for three weeks of winter break.

This by no means makes my real home inferior. I’m super excited to see my parents again after four months, embrace them and tell them about everything that I have been through. So much has happened, reshaping and sharpening my personality. But the talks won’t probably last longer than the total number of hours I spend traveling back home (which is 26 hours).

I would probably go visit high school friends some time, but it’s hard to maintain conversations because we don’t even stay in the same environment anymore. Most of my close friends chose to go abroad like me, and they all decided to return home in the summer. So I guess it will be quite hard for all of us.

I can’t believe I would ever say this but I really miss school. Going to class, eating Sodexo’s food, running late because the elevator takes forever to reach my floor and stops at almost every single floor on the way back down. I will also miss chatting, complaining, and laughing with friends, passing by the neutral zone ten times a day, trying to focus on assignments but never really being able to master it.

I already miss faking my mature and professional manner but mostly end up failing terribly, etc. They are all parts of me now. On the second day of the break, without these habits, I already felt partially empty. I might be too emotional, but that’s how I really feel about my first semester at Creighton, and I’m not afraid to express it.

Creighton has now become my second home, half a globe away from the original one. Even though the travel requires a lot in terms of effort, money, and time, I still find it worthy. Eleven months of being away from family help me treasure every moment I have with them, and those moments give me strength to carry on on my own.