I don’t know about you but as a freshman in my second semester of college, I have realized the things that I have been missing while being three hours away. Don’t get me wrong, my school is my second home now. At first, yes, it was hard and the transition from home to being on my own was almost traumatizing. But I was able to find my home and my new life was adjusted quickly enough, for example with my friends and roommates I have found the family portion I missed. There are still a lot of things missing in my new “big girl college student” life, and I decide to make a list to commemorate the top 5 things that college students miss while being far away from home.

1. Having to find your own motivation

Yes, that’s right. Along with the endless fraternity parties and late night, fast food runs with your best friends, there is actually schoolwork you have to do when you go to college. It’s all fun and games until you’re sitting in your dorm room having a panic attack because you have a multitude of assignments due and no motivation to do it. Parents were always there for us to push us to be the best we can be, but at this point in our life, we don’t have them by our side every day to tell us to finish our homework on time. We as young adults have to find our own motivation, whether that be knowing you need a specific grade in a class in order to get into your respected major school or to have the ability to go out without worrying about the consequences of not finishing your schoolwork.

2. Being sick and away from home

This one truly is the worst part in my book, especially with my problematic immune system and ability to catch a cold or illness like Yadier Molina can catch bad throws. College is a whole new germ pool, with thousands of new people in your life, you’re prone to sit next to a person with an oncoming flu virus, or bump into someone right as they sneeze on you. “First Aid Kits” are almost a regular requirement these days, and luckily for my parents they knew exactly what to pack me: Dayquil, Nyquil, Mucinex, nose sprays, Claritin, cough syrup, you name it and I most likely have it at this point. But no amount of medicine helps the way that my parents would usually be able to help. No matter what treatments they send back with you to help with whatever may not feel good, nothing will compare to how when you felt sick, your parents were always there to make you soup and take your temperature.

3. No more home cooked meals

No one looks forwards to sitting in the dining hall and eating whatever the meal of the day is. Everyone looks forward to sitting at the dinner table and eating a hot and fresh meal, especially in the comfort of one’s home. It seems as if when we leave for college, the refrigerator is stocked high with food and you start to crave even the weird dinners your parents prepared. Of course, yes, you CAN come home and you will come home and you will be able to eat again, I count down the days until I can be home to eat a meal that my dad makes, but during those weeks where coming home isn’t an option, you’re stuck eating suspicious chicken and lots (really way too many) of hamburgers.

4. Having to share a home space with strangers

This one can really suck, especially if you’re an only child and if you get bad roommates. When you move away to school, one of the things you are forced to do is live on campus in one of the university dorms. With this, you receive a roommate or two or even five. This is fine and honestly a great part of college because you immediately have someone you know and hopefully like, but having to share a space is hard when you’ve only ever had to share with family. Even if you’re not an only child, you know that there is space is the house that is yours, and space in the house that is your siblings, but with a dorm there is no space for just you and just them. There may not be room to put your favorite fuzzy chair in the living area, but there is ALWAYS room for problems about cleaning shifts, finding your roommates pants and thinking they are yours, and other popular situations. At home, your fuzzy chair sits perfectly in the right corner of the room, your mom always had a list of chores to do but more times than not if you forgot to clean she was on it, and at home you only have your clothes to throw around your space. It’s a serious wake up call leaving the home you grew up in to move into a small box with new people, but the year will end and afterwards you will have the opportunity to do it all again, but this time in an apartment.

5. Missing your original support system

Your parents give you love and support that could never be replaced by someone else. Their love and faith in you is a big aspect in a parent-child relationship; they will love you and want you to be the best that you can be and will cheer you on and comfort you through every hardship and be there and celebrating during every great achievement. Your parents have been with you since the beginning, and now you have to go off on your own. Your home is where you took your first steps, rode your first bike, drove your first car, and now that you have moved away, you’re finding more “firsts” at your university. For someone who is a serious daddy’s girl and having my mom as my best friend, it was hard for me to feel like I could become successful without their guidance right next to me. Being home makes your bad days easier and your good days brighter because your support system is physically there. Your support system could also include hometown friends and coworkers that you’ve grown up with, and having to leave them behind as well hurts just as bad. The best thing out of this bad situation is that you always have something (someone) to look forward to, though.

Home is a word that may be used to describe your university, it may be able to describe your dorm room, but those homes will never be the space where your family and your childhood stay. Moving away is a journey that will help the person grow and find themselves within themselves, but being home gives one peace and a calming happiness. For those struggling with being far away from home, just remember: we get a month off for winter break and three months for summer!