As much as I love being at college living my own life, there are times when I just need to go home. My life is crazy busy and every day is stressful so to be able to step away for a few weeks and go back to my roots is such a treat. Home for me is Chesapeake, Virginia, or to make it easier for all of you to figure out, near Virginia Beach. Basically, I'm far enough away from the tourists so all of us locals don't rip our hair out.
Obviously, the best thing about going home is seeing my Mom, Dad, and sister Bec. I talk to the almost every day when I'm away but nothing will compare to sitting down at dinner with them and being able to laugh together. Honestly having the ability to sit down and have long late night talks with my dad is the best. Now I can have a beer with him while we talk, which makes it even better. My sister and I started getting along better after I left for college and now that she's 16, we can have better conversations about life. I guess we had to be apart to relate.
One of the hardest things about being away from home is leaving my dog Rock. He's my baby and I adore him. My family adopted him when I came home from my freshman year of college and I fell in love. He's rather skittish so reintegrating myself is a bit of a process with him. When I first come home I have to immediately lay on the floor in a non-threatening position so he can sniff me up and down. It's about a five-minute process but once he realizes who I am, he immediately rolls on top of me and runs around. Then he is always around after that reintroduction. There's something so comforting about having an animal always around that loves you unconditionally. Leaving him is one of the hardest things I have to do at the end of each summer
Outside of my family life, the greatest thing about coming home is seeing my best friend since second grade. She and I both have crazy lives but we've both been the one consistent and stable things in each other's lives. Talking over text and phone is nice but is just a sad filler when it comes to actually seeing each other. She and I can have fun doing anything together. She and I can just run errands and turn it into a good time. A friendship where not every hang out session has to be a huge event is one of the greatest gifts. I'm always reminded of how grateful I am for our friendship.
Even though I don't go home as much as I should, I treasure the time I get to spend there. Knowing this summer might be the last long trip home makes all of this even more special.
