I had been looking forward to returning home after finals since the minute I left my family at the end of Thanksgiving break. What I didn’t expect, however, is how it would feel to leave my other family, back at University. It was then that I realized I couldn’t leave one home without missing the other, that I was stuck in a middle ground, living a double life of sorts. College students are the newest types of nomads; balancing multiple families, living their life out of tons of stuffed duffel bags packed in the trunk of their car.
They have one home in their hometown: sweet and familiar. It holds the friends they’ve known since kindergarten, the ones they spent every Friday night with after the home football games. It holds the places they grew up visiting, the homemade meals made with love after a hard English test, the window in the living room that makes it impossible to hide the fact that you are a little past curfew. Most importantly, though, it’s the family that makes this home so special. There is no erasing this place, or the feeling of coming home.
They also have a home at their university. It’s new, exciting, adventurous and fast-paced. It’s in the dorm they spent forever decorating just the way they want it. It’s the friends they made quickly, the ones they know they can call with anything- a request for cookies, a party invitation, an update on what the cute guy in trig was wearing today. It’s the spot in the library they spend hours in studying for that French exam. It’s the sisters they can come to whenever and be loved, steadfastly. This home has a way of getting into your heart and sticking there -- there is something about the shared stresses of college curriculum that bring people together.
Upon reflecting on this past semester, I have decided that the most important thing I have learned these past few months is this: home really is a feeling, not a place. Home is where you feel loved and accepted no matter what you may be dealing with, a feeling of belonging. It’s where you feel completely comfortable being yourself. Home is more than brick and mortar -- it’s felt deep in your heart around people you love -- and the luckiest people have more than one.
