Coming home for winter break is one of the best, but most awkward parts of college. It's the longest period you'll be home other than the summer. You're sandwiched between semesters with just enough time to relax before heading back to your new 'normal'. The older you get, the weirder it is to come home and the blurrier your boundaries become. There are many struggles of coming home, but here are just a few:
1. Packing. What do you pack to go to your own house? What will you need? What won't you need? Do you put stuff back in your closet? Do you live out of your suitcase? Do you just throw stuff on the floor and pretend it's okay?
2. Going out. At school, going out is easier when the drinks cost $4 and you can walk to your favorite places. You can dress how you want and stay out until the bars close. At home, there's most likely fewer options for you to turn up, and it's not really normal for you to come home at 3:30am.
3. Food. You're so used to eating ramen and Chick fil A that home cooked meals feel too good to be true. Grocery shopping makes you feel guilty because now you understand how much food really costs. And when hunger strikes at 1:30am, there's most likely fewer delivery places available, but you can't microwave pizza rolls in fear of the (now exponentially louder) beeping.
4. Sleep. At school, you can sleep any chance you get. You set timers for 16 minute naps and can find yourself a comfy place almost anywhere. A good night's sleep can range from 3-13 hours. At home, if you sleep too late or too much, your family thinks there's something medically wrong or you're on drugs. The reason that you're "just tired" doesn't seem to cut it.
5. Newly formed habits. Apparently Red Bull isn't considered a healthy breakfast now and dinner time comes before 9pm? You can get away with sacrificing your health for a few months while you're away, but coming home means structure and structure isn't in your collegiate vocabulary.
6. Hanging out with your friends. It's great to catch up with old friends that you haven't seen in months, but you miss your school friends terribly when you're home. It breaks your heart to go on "Find My Friends" and see everyone hundreds of miles away from you. The worst part is that the ones you see nearby might have drifted apart from you or have their own routine that you don't fit into anymore. The friends you make at college text you the minute break begins saying they miss you, while the friends you grew up with leave you on 'read'. It hurts to see it put into perspective, but it helps you understand who your true friends are- the ones who call you when you're home because they've been waiting for you to come back or they're waiting for school to start again to reunite. Either way, this is when you see your friendships in a different light.
7. Counting the days to go back. After you've been home for a while, it can start to get old and you get that feeling you did months or years ago when you first decided to go off to college. You're ready to get back to your new lifestyle, your new friends, and your new normal, but that will make the next homecoming in the spring or summer so much sweeter.
