Spending time with the family back home for the holidays might seem like something most college students look forward to, but for others, it's one of their least favorite parts of the holidays.
For some, it's seeing family that they don't always get along with. Maybe it's that cousin that's always bullied you, or a grandparent that's too ignorant for the times. Or, it's the empty seat at the dinner table for a family member that passed on. It's that stocking on the mantle that won't be eagerly emptied on Christmas morning.
Some college students don't like coming back to their hometown for the holidays because they've grown as a person, while everyone else back home has seemed to stay the same. I've always thought that coming back to my hometown is a waste of my time. I don't do anything when I'm home, except spend time with my parents. They're usually working or running around taking care of errands.
My sisters have their own plans, and I've cut ties with all "friends" that I had, so I sit around and watch TV or scroll through my social media for hours at a time.
As great as it is to see my family, I wish they'd decide to go somewhere else for the holidays. I don't mean an extravagant ski trip in the mountains, but anywhere else but home. Home isn't home to me anymore. I'm not the same person I was when I lived here, which means my habits and interests have changed, and I am easily bored.
Home for the holidays for a lot of students also means catching up on doctors appointments, dentist appointments, errands, household chores, and any other duties your parents need getting done. There isn't much time to enjoy your break, especially when you have to drive around and take care of last-minute things for your parents.
Coming home for the holidays means reminders of your past, whether it's driving by the place where you had your first heartbreak or the parking lot where you munched on fast food with friends before racing home for curfew. For me, it's reminders of every stupid mistake I've ever made and the consequences that followed. It's the nagging feeling that everyone is talking about me when I'm home for the holidays.
Some students have to go back home to their small towns for the holidays, and it's the overwhelming boredom that consumes their hometown. For them, the only excitement is the news that their town is getting a Publix or going to a pool hall on the other side of town to get a drink with friends. There isn't the option of going to the mall and spending hours shopping, or heading to the newest art museum, so they have to make the most out of their small town.
One thing college students can agree on is how nice it is to go back to their college home once the holidays are over. Sleeping in your bed and having your daily routine, uninterrupted, isn't appreciated until you're away from home for a few weeks. Although the spring semester begins too soon and the amount of schoolwork is far too overwhelming, it's just nice to get back to the routine.
