When I was in high school and fought with my parents, my ultimate comeback to make them as angry as possible was “When I go to college I’m never coming home.” I know that is extremely harsh (trust me my parents did not put up with that), but I genuinely wanted to believe that once I got to college I wouldn’t ever want to come home. I’m a pretty independent person, which in teenager-speak means “I like to do things on my own for the most part but when things go wrong my mom is on speed dial.” That being said, I thought that the freedom of going to college was going to be enough to make me never want to leave Austin. WRONG. As a college student, I truly believe that I am thriving for the most part, but there are many times when I wish I could just go home and take a weeklong nap in my own bed. While this is highly unrealistic, even being able to go home for a weekend amidst my busy schedule is a blessing. I was able to go home last weekend, and it was so nice to have so much peace even if it was just for two days. Here is a list of 5 things that I look forward to when going home.

1. Avoiding all responsibilities by snuggling with dogs

In high school, if there was ever a point in studying where I felt like I couldn’t do it anymore, I would go snuggle with my dogs for a solid 30 minutes to avoid responsibilities. After getting mad at the world that I wasn’t born a dog because dogs don’t have to take tests, I would then regroup and refocus after the 30-minute pity party. I would then study with the intention of “I need to get good grades so I can go to a good college because my future dogs are relying on me.” In college, since I have 0 dogs to snuggle with, I either rely on food or napping to cope with my stress. Homework too hard? Nap. Test material confusing? Nap. Have an endless to-do list but not enough time to get everything done? Ignore the entire list and nap. It’s a horrible coping mechanism that could easily be fixed with the presence of a dog.

2. Eating real food

Considering I am the world’s pickiest eater and am known for having a diet consisting of mac and cheese, Nutella, and nuggets, college was truly a wake-up call for me in the food department. I eat the food provided for me at the dorm, and it isn’t necessarily like I have a big say in what gets served. Not in the mood for a fish taco? Too bad, the choice is either eat it or starve. If you know you’re not going to have any other options for food throughout the day, that lentil soup becomes a million more times appetizing. My standards for food have definitely gone down a lot since coming to college, but being able to go home and enjoy a home cooked meal or a warm meal from my favorite local restaurant is an amazing feeling.

3. Eating at any time of day

Adding on to my last one, my dorm only serves meals at certain times in the day, and with my crazy schedule, I oftentimes find myself sprinting to the dining hall hoping they will show me mercy even though I’m a minute late. Being at home and opening my fridge that contains option after option of food choice feels like such a privilege… one that will never be taken for granted again.

4. Having privacy

In college, every time I have to make a phone call I have to walk downstairs and talk in the gym or close my closet doors to talk in my closet. Having two roommates is a blast 90 percent of the time, but sometimes it feels weird to never truly have time alone. When I went home for the weekend, it was strange and eerily quiet in my room and it felt odd to have so much uninterrupted time to myself. I didn’t bring a car to college, but in high school after a long day, I would sit in my driveway in my car and just think. Those five minutes of just sitting still and thinking would help me get my thoughts together for the rest of the day. That time to myself was definitely necessary considering I do my best thinking when I’m by myself, but when I’m surrounded by other college kids 24/7 it's easy to forget that I need to find somewhere on campus where I can escape and be alone for awhile.

5. Taking baths

I share a bathroom with six girls in college, and though I haven’t had any crazy experiences with this, I do hate that I always feel a little bit rushed in the shower. At home, I would take my time in the shower… usually taking a bath and reading a book, de-stressing from the day in the tub. Considering all we have is a shower, I’m restricted from taking baths and I always feel like I’m taking too much time in the shower… I subconsciously try to speed the process up as much as possible.

So guys, don’t take for granted a lot of the things you have at home. There will come a time when you will miss all of the little things you took for granted. You will wish you had savored things like a relaxing bath or private phone conversation. Home will always be home...