1. The Food
There is a friendly man, who makes omelets, for students in the morning. You can find him making the best omelets on campus till 9:30 a.m. Monday through Thursday. He is a favorite as student’s flock in line to hear him talk, crack jokes, and abundantly load up your omelet with cheese, meat, and vegetables to make anyone’s morning better.
As you say, “thank you, have a good day” he will reply with, “I hope you have an even better day.” With that, I am reminded of home. As a Mom or Dad will pause their morning busy schedules to make you breakfast, kiss you goodbye, and yell “Have a great day” as you run out the door in their hopes that you will have an even better day than them. Home is that feeling of hopeful encouragement, even found at college.
2. The Dorm Rooms
Dorm rooms get hectic, messy, and sometimes downright gross at the end of a long week. You and your roommate constantly running in and out, never taking off shoes. Other friends strolling in to visit whenever they please. “I need to clean” is the statement that is always repeated. It’s then that you start to realize you need to do what was always magically done at home.
Because apparently, the floors don’t wipe themselves, you actually need to buy snacks since pop tarts don’t appear out of thin air as they had before, and the sheets of your bed actually need to get washed. You come to find out, that after you’ve completed everything that had to get done, that you’ll find that sense of comfort and coziness that Home gave you. A piece of home is found in a dorm room with your homework done, the floors cleaned and music playing. Yes, you can find comfort in a much smaller place.
3. The Activities
Football games, track meets, speech and drama events, those are just a few of many things that more than likely gave you the best memories while still living at home, but those feelings of pride don’t have to be left behind. Maybe this time you’re not the one participating, but let the environment of cheering after a touchdown with your friends on the sideline of a college game give you a jolt of memory from the time you were playing back home.
Let a volleyball game, a certain play being held, or whatever the event or activities are, let it remind you of Home. Because more than likely you found out who you were doing those things. Maybe you’re the one sitting on the sidelines watching or being the one to be able to continue to play it or participate in it while going to college, whatever it is found Home in being a part of something bigger than yourself.
4. "The Small Things"
More than likely the realization of a special moment won’t come till it’s a memory. A picture you can look back on, and keep looking back on. That those small insignificant moments that happen in everyday life are what bring us closer to Home. That night you went 3 A.M. sledding with college friends that brought you back to snow days you could enjoy as a kid with Mom inside making hot chocolate and homemade brownies.
The small moment like the perfect song coming on while walking to class that you always listened to with family. Home is seeing a dog on campus and immediately smiling because you realized you have a family pet back home that still loves you, regardless of if you’re there or not.
No, you can’t bring home to college, but you can feel home at college.
