Thanksgiving break is here, and if you’re lucky enough to go home for the week, it’s important to recognize the things that aren’t readily available at college. It might be a little difficult to truly value these things in the moment, so here’s a remainder to appreciate the following during your time at home.
1. Privacy
This is a luxury and a rarity at school. Often times you’re in your room, suite or apartment with anywhere from one to four roommates, or you’re hanging out with friends. There’s not much “you” time. At home, you can take some time to yourself in the comfort of your own room. This means naps with no interruptions, playing your Netflix show out loud, or just basking in actual silence. Alone time means no one could be watching your every move or taking a peek at what you might be doing.
2. The variety of home-cooked food
As lucky as we are to have so many dining halls at BU — along with the GSU and a million other on-campus and off-campus restaurant options — sometimes it gets a little old. Everyone loves their lunchtime Cheeseology or the omelet bar in Warren dining hall, but these favorites can grow repetitive. Not to mention, it’s a stressor in itself to keep track of the dining points or meal swipes you have available. At home, food is made for you and there’s no currency involved. Also, home-cooked food isn’t the same thing over and over again. Factor in Thanksgiving and its many many leftovers, and you’ll be set. If the food isn’t being made gourmet in front of you by one of your parents, the fridge is always stocked with your favorites. The best part is, you probably didn’t pay for it either.
3. Seeing family
The greatest thing about going home over Thanksgiving break is that you’re probably going to see more than just your immediate family. Maybe you’ve seen your immediate family during a quick weekend trip home or during Parents Weekend, but you may not have seen your grandparents since the summer. Of course, all families have different degrees of closeness. If this is the case, going home and being able to sit around with your family and be caught up with them is comforting. It’s nice to be home, but it’s even nicer to be home with family.
4. Showering
Showering in college is perhaps the biggest adjustment. Bathrooms aren’t all yours anymore — or you don’t share them with just one or two people (those people being members of your family). Besides that, they’re definitely not as clean as your home bathroom. At school, there’s hair in sinks and toilet paper all over the floor. At home, you can count on a clean floor, clean sinks, and an overall pleasant showering experience. Take this time to play music and sing in the shower. Also, who enjoys wearing shoes in the shower?
5. Hanging out with home friends
College friends are great, of course, but there’s nothing like seeing people you haven’t seen in months. Home friends are the people you spent every day with since, maybe, kindergarten. You spend a pretty good amount of time with your college friends, but nothing adds up to that. Being with home friends is something that can’t be taken for granted. No one knows you like the people you went to high school with, so it’s nice to let loose and circle back to your crazy, silly roots with these people you’ve known forever.
6. Visiting local delicacies
Living away from home for so long makes you suddenly recognize those things from your hometown that you really love. Whether it’s that coffee shop that has really good lattes or a deli that makes your favorite sandwich, local delicacies are a must when you return home. Make sure you stock up on the things you miss the most when you’re living in Boston. If nothing else is going to beat that sandwich, get it as many times as you can.
7. Parents waiting on you
Perhaps the most important thing to take advantage of when you’re home is the presence of your parents. Of course, remind your parents how you’ve missed them and you love them, but, besides that, do not take for granted how much they will do for you while you’re home. They’re not used to doing things for you anymore. Maybe if you have a sibling, they’re still in practice when it comes to grabbing a glass of water or doing laundry. But, they want you to be comfortable. Make sure you don’t forget that when you’re habitually going to do your laundry yourself. You’re home to take a break from adulting. Let your parents do the adulting for you if they want to, just like good old times.
Thanksgiving break, for some, is your first homecoming since moving into school. You might feel like you have so much to do, you don’t even know where to start. Just don’t forget what you have at home that you definitely don’t have at school. Cherish those things. December is a long month.
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