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The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at BU chapter.

Leading up to Boston University’s Family and Friends Weekend, all anybody would talk about was how their parents were coming to visit. My immediate family lives in California – too far to come for the weekend or for me to go home for Thanksgiving.

As a substitute, my grandparents visited from New York. I had a great weekend with them and especially appreciated the opportunity to get out of the dorm and eat something other than dining hall food (check out my latest article, where I ranked BU’s options!). We watched the Head of the Charles and visited the Printmaker’s Biennial Gallery.

The highlight of my weekend was being invited to a Shabbat dinner hosted by our family friends in Cambridge. I did not grow up in a religious household, so outside of casual Christmases, my exposure to religion was extremely limited; I didn’t know exactly what to expect.

people gathered around a table
Photo by Askar Abayev from Pexels

As soon as I walked in the door, I realized there was nothing to worry about. I was introduced to many relatives, including college students and recent graduates in the Boston area. People asked about my own college experience so far – inquiring about my classes, roommate, and Her Campus writing. 

Shabbat dinner itself was not the ultra-serious event I had pictured, either. People joked about the food variety – apparently pesto pasta is a recurring dinner in that household – and there was lots of talking and laughing. After dinner, I played (and lost) many card games with the younger kids on the living room floor.

I didn’t even feel uncomfortable with not knowing any of the prayers. Each tradition, including lighting candles to represent each member of the host family and remaining silent as the Challah was passed around, was all explained to me with kindness.

All I was expected to do was be respectful and participate where I could. I also enjoyed hearing everyone sing.

Challah bread cottonbro
Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

I had a wonderful time. Even though this wasn’t something that I was used to at home, I found myself completely accepted into a family with new traditions to explore. I will definitely be joining them again.

My advice: step outside your comfort zone! You just might find yourself at home in a place you never expected!

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Rae Ruane is a biweekly writer for Her Campus Boston University. She enjoys writing about a broad range of topics but is especially partial to feminism and culture. Having grown up in a small beach town in California, she finds that there is a lot of interesting material to cover in a new city! Rae is a sophomore studying Film and Television and Myth Studies. As a film major, she wants to study screenwriting and has won a few awards for her short screenplay work in the past from the Central Coast Film Society Student Film and Media Arts Competition and Urbanite Arts & Film Festival. Her writing has also appeared in BU’s Deerfield Journal. In her free time at BU, Rae enjoys going on walks along the esplanade and visiting museums. She listens to a lot of music and her favorite artists are Chappell Roan and Angèle. Outside of Her Campus she is involved with the Students for Reproductive Freedom and BU College Democrats clubs at Boston University.