As these summer days get longer and longer, I realize how much my life has changed because of you. Being at home is quiet. I don't hear yelling at 3 a.m. outside or down the hall, I don't open my bedroom door to a blinding bright hallway at 4 a.m. when I get up to go the restroom, I don't wake up at 8 a.m. to my roommates mirror light shining at me while she gets ready for her AM class, I don't wake up at 11:45 a.m. from a long night of last-minute studying and realize "Crap! Breakfast ends in 15 minutes," rummage through our papers to find your key-card for meal swipes, find a pair of shoes and run out the door. The walk/run/jog to the dining hall/main campus seems a mile longer when you're rushing to either get some food or to class. On your way to lunch (breakfast to you), you get messages from your friends being all "dude where are you? we have our usual table" and that one message puts a smile on your face because just the fact that they always include you makes you feel like you have a spot on campus in general. No, you may not have the same group of friends that you had on orientation day or your first dew days of classes but who cares? Explore, get to know everyone, be friendly! be open! it's college! it's life!

Comparing schedules, figuring out what time frame you and your friends can get food together, go to the library or just head back to the dorm room for a mid-day brain break before your study groups, rehearsals, night classes, etc. Five days of the week you have a stay up all night studying, get food, go to class, socialize, take a two hour mid-day nap, go eat again, three hour library stay, go get a smoothie at the cafe then go back to the dorm to either chill with your RA for a few hours and rant about your daily struggles or just chill with your friends, eat ever snack you can find and binge watch your favorite Netflix series cycle. On the weekends? There is no cycle for the weekends. You may not even remember half of the weekend.

You don't even realize how much has changed until you go back to your hometown and realize how much you've grown and changed (in a good way hopefully). Everything seems so different and maybe even smaller. Your bed seems more comfortable and a home-cooked meal seems/tastes as delicious as ever. Being home is great for a few weeks. You're reuniting with your friends and family, going to some parties and having a good time, but after a while, you start to miss being surrounded by your peers 24/7 and being awake all night doing God knows what.

People have always told me I would love college and I'd miss it in the Summer but I didn't know I would love it so much and miss it like this.