The first return to my hometown.
Don’t get me wrong, I love college so far, but I was so pumped to return for fall break. When you spend 18 years in one place, you’re bound to end up liking something, even if it’s only showering without flip flops. But I realized I liked a lot more about my home. When you put every step through your house on your snapchat story that kind of shows you like your house. And here I thought it was devoid of love and compassion - despite the typical love and compassion poster in a suburban household. Each step along the way, I realized I missed more and more about home, like those gigantic steps my dad takes down the staircase, here are the 13 steps to my return to fall break.
1. Preparation
I spent the entire day trying to get out of class as fast as possible. In philosophy, I willed the clock to move faster by using Plato’s advice. Then in business, I had 50 minutes for a quiz - except I’m trying to get out of class, so I finished that in fifteen. Grades won’t stop me from getting home ASAP. Then, I’m tried to swallow my chicken parm sub in one bite - I wouldn’t recommend it - you get sauce on your face, it doesn’t look too hot. Then, I went to my room, washed my face, and started to pack.
2. Packing
Fall break is such a weird time. It’s not a permanent break like winter or summer, but you still have to pack something. It’s like limbo. So I just decided to pack my laundry (do you think my mom misses laundry as much as she misses me?) and some shoes. I figured I would just wear those awkward t shirts that always end up in my room. Oh well, I guess I won’t look good while I’m playing video games in my basement munching on chips.
3. Meeting my dad
My dad and I rolled out of the dorm looking as cool as two guys carrying golf clubs, laundry, and shoes can look. People actually averted their eyes because of how hot we were - or maybe the sheer awkwardness of two guys carrying golf clubs, laundry, and shoes. That’s called father son bonding.
4. The trip home
Not seeing my dad for two months gave me an opportunity to annoy him for a full 2 hours. Apparently I was talking faster than he could drive, so it distracted him from getting the drive down in 90 minutes.
5. Seeing my mom
The funniest thing was, my mom knew to avoid me. After I tortured my dad for two hours, my mom immediately “got a phone call” and left the room. My dad pulled out all the stops, saying that “oh, he’s your son, talk to him.” And she said, “I’m on the phone,” and I was like, “Dad did I tell you about that one time I saw Jay Wright on campus?” Needless to say, my dad no longer supports Nova basketball.
6. Dinner
My family always has to hit up a restaurant when the prodigal son returns. That’s like, classic college. I always remember how bitter I was when my bro returned, and he got all the attention. You can’t expect me to get all the attention year round and then give it up for a week. But now he’s too good to stay at home so I can’t put the shoe on the other foot. Does that phrase work here? Who cares?
7. Seeing friends from home
By August of senior year, I thought I had seen enough of my friends from high school - between their pathetic excuses for beards, jokes about me, and willingness to abandon me to go to different colleges. But now I’m back, although not all of them are. I have to slum it with the kids locally and the ones still in high school. But I still might have had a more embarrassing reunion with my friend than with my parents. There was hugging screaming, the whole nine yards. It was pretty damn manly.
This is the point on the staircase where I jump to the bottom because I don’t have time for six more steps (I also only have five minutes until my writing deadline. My procrastination follows me home), so I’m off to enjoy my fall break. Shoutout to Nova for giving me a full week to enjoy good food and have free time.
