The thought of going away to college my senior year seemed picture perfect. Now, being almost finished with my first semester, I have come to realize that being away from home teaches you a lot about yourself.

Distance from your family can be a good or bad thing. You don't truly find yourself until you are away from your family for a long period of time. I have gained a whole new relationship with my family that has impacted us so well. I have matured so much since the beginning of the semester. Being away from my family has helped me realize how to take care of myself without my family's help. It has also made me value my time with my family. I feel like I have only spent 20 days with my brother this whole semester. Distance from them has made me a much stronger, independent person. I used to feel like I would have to call my mom about everything. Literally. And now, I am starting to figure things out on my own without having to make a phone call.

When I first got to college, which is two hours away from home, I loved it. Even though I loved it, I still missed my family a lot. It felt like I was at a summer camp. I called my mom about everything. From knowing what medicine to take to figuring out what size garbage bags I needed, she was just a phone call away and answered each call I made. It wasn't until a week or two into school that I realized being away from home is a good thing and has helped me grow as a person.

When you start to live on your own, you quickly realize how much you depended on your family for almost everything. You wouldn't think you would need as much as you do in college until you get there. You also don't realize how to do certain things because you weren't used to ever doing them. You don't realize how much groceries or your shampoo cost because you weren't used to buying any. You also don't know how to manage money, so you spend your first month spending a lot more than your parents thought you would.

Distance from family hasn't always been easy. There are a lot of times when I want to come home, but can't because studying has literally taken over my life. There are multiple times when I have wanted a certain home cooked meal and I can't have it. There are a lot of things that I miss about my hometown because nothing compares to where I go to college. College is definitely a place to find yourself and become independent. It shows you how being on your own really is and it teaches you how to handle certain situations. No matter what, home is where the heart is and being away from home can either make or break you or both.