So we've made it to Winter break. As a college Sophomore, I'm feeling pretty differently about this upcoming break than I did this time last year, and I expect I'm not alone. Winter break Freshman year is filled with excitement over an entire month off in the middle of the school year, and some unanswered questions about going home. By the time Sophomore year rolls around, you know the answers to these question, and also know that a month off of school isn't really a month off.
Here are some of the things that change about winter break after your Freshman year:
Freshman year: After your first semester of freedom you're a little worried about what it will be like to go back to living with your parents for a month. Will they treat you like the grown-up you feel like you are? What rules will they still enforce?
Sophomore year: You know exactly what to expect going back to live with your parents again. They may treat you like a grown-up now, but the whole no boys/girls allowed in your bedroom thing won't be up for debate until you're married. And maybe not even then.
Freshman year: You're also wondering how you'll manage to survive apart from your friends for an entire month.
Sophomore year: Yeah, you still haven't figured that out yet.
Freshman year: The first week of break is crowded with plans to visit your old high school and hang out with all your friends from home.
Sophomore year: After Christmas you get around to making plans with the 2 or 3 friends you've managed to stay close with since starting college. Then you spend the rest of break low-key hoping you don't run into anyone else you knew in high school.
Freshman year: You finish the semester off looking forward to a long, relaxing, break.
Sophomore year: You start work the Monday after your last final. Then, you spend the rest of break trying to pick up as many hours as possible at your seasonal job because you know you'll be broke by the end of the month if you don't.
Freshman year: Everyone, family, friends, people from church, are going to ask you how school was.
Sophomore year: The only question you're likely to get asked is why you don't have a boy/girlfriend. Have fun with that one.
Freshman year: You come home half-way hoping you'll run into your ex high school sweetheart because you want to figure out whether they missed you.
Sophomore year: Nick who?
Freshman year: You come home feeling accomplished for having made it through your first semester of college.
Sophomore year: You're glad to have this one under your belt, but the prospect of still having 5 more ahead of you is a little daunting.
Freshman year: You spend the first week of break anxiously waiting for grades to be posted.
Literally any other year: Yup, some things never change.
Winter break may not be as exciting as it was Freshman year, but it's still a good time to relax after the stress of the semester. So enjoy it!
