Your first Christmas in college is definitely a memorable one. It’s the first year you don’t wake up to a six-foot tree every morning. Instead, you wake up to a miniature one that you and your roommate bought to compensate for your loss. You don’t get to play with the nativity scene every day or sit by the fireplace while watching your favorite Christmas movie. The only way you get to watch a good holiday film is if you can find one on Netflix (that is, if you even have time to watch it). Rather than spending your time baking or running back and forth to the mall, you spend the days leading up to Christmas drowning in textbooks and review packets. Needless to say, it’s a bit of a damper on the holiday spirit.

As someone who is a Christmas-time enthusiast, it was a bit difficult to get used to. I found that I actually celebrated Christmas more during the month of November than I did in December, simply because I had more time to do so. I started playing Michael Buble’s Christmas album precisely on November 1^st. I put up lights in my room around the same time and began the gift buying process shortly after. My roommates and I were completely decked out for the holidays way before anyone else. However, once December finally came, our spirit died down.

In the first week of December I had at least four essays due. I spent a solid six hours each day in the library, drinking way more caffeine than I should have. I was lucky if I was in bed before 2 am. The following two weeks weren’t any better. On top of even more essays, I also had to begin final project preparations.

Then came studying for finals.

Finals week in college is absolute hell. That isn’t an exaggeration or an opinion; it’s the truth. In fact, I’m sure if you looked up the definition of “hell” in the dictionary, finals week is a synonym. During this time, nobody wants to hang out or spend time watching a movie or go into town. Everyone is stressed to the max and scrambling to hand in papers that they procrastinated until the last minute. There is no time for holiday carols or baking cookies. There’s not much time for any Christmas-related festivities.

Christmas in college is nothing like it is at home. Unfortunately, you lose a lot of the child-like Christmas spirit you feel at home. You’re in a new environment with new people. You lack the familiarity that home offers during this time of year. Traditions aren’t as easy to stick to anymore which, for me, is incredibly upsetting.

However, despite all of this I feel that this year’s Christmas has been the most meaningful. I am appreciating my time home more than usual simply because I do not have as much time home as I did last year. Seeing my family means more to me because it’s been awhile since we’ve all been together. The feeling of sitting by my fireplace and eating Christmas cookies reminds me just how much I love my home. I’ve always loved the holidays and this year I feel that I do even more so. From the candy canes on my tree to the smell of home-cooked meals, everything reminds me why I love the holidays so much. Being away from college definitely has its ups and downs, but one thing it certainly does is make being home with family even more precious.