In honor of SFA’s Homecoming week, it’s only right to weigh the pros and cons. Homecoming is a totally different ballgame from high school. Moreover, homecoming here at SFA is in a league of its own.
Experiencing homecoming is an absolute must; there are so many traditions. The bonfire is pretty much a tailgate event at night around a blazing hill of fire. The parade is an opportunity to include locals and students in school spirit. The football game is the bread and butter of the entire week for obvious reasons. Not to mention, organizations host awesome events throughout the week both on and off campus. All in all, it’s an experience that every student should embrace.
Photo by: Giampiero Vanzzini
Sometimes, this is an experience that students only need to embrace once.
It could be for academic, spiritual or physical reasons, the point is that homecoming, as fun as it appears, can literally suck the life out of you. It’s as if you’re the host and homecoming week is the parasite.
Normally, freshman year is that pivotal first semester when a student tastes homecoming: SFA edition. Livers are tested to the max and sleep isn’t even a thing for like three days straight. When sobriety is out of the question for a large percentage of the student body, everything is all fun and games until the week after when reality hits again.
It’s easy to neglect school priorities during this time, especially for those involved in fraternities or sororities. Organizations are all over the place to be a part of the hype with good reason. This can easily get students caught up in the moment. The main disadvantage is that homecoming normally falls around the same time as midterm exams. A lot of students, particularly freshman, will not master the skill of multitasking by this time and will have to pay the price for it sooner than later.
It is very hard to recover from bombing a midterm because of the weight it holds for the entire class. But besides academic reasons, homecoming events just don’t mesh with everyone, and that’s okay.
Even teachers understand the value of this time, including the professors who claim they do not care. The lumberjack hype can be extremely exciting as well as overwhelming, so it makes sense for some students to escape it all.
Photo by: Daina Phillips
There’s no place like home. It’s a cliché that is completely unavoidable in a topic like this because it is one hundred percent true. Going home on a regular weekend already has its perks for those who miss a home-cooked meal, but going home during homecoming week can allow students to avoid chaotic settings and just relax.
Skipping a year of homecoming will not destroy you. The beer will still taste the same. The parties will play the same music. Snapchat will still be there for you to decide what to upload, delete or snap and save but not post for your mom’s friend to witness. The moral of the story, choosing to step away is not the end of the world regardless of what others may think.
As stated before, SFA is on a different caliber from other schools; we party on Tuesdays like it’s a Friday night. Nonetheless, family downtime and a hearty meal will still hold the number one spot. There are some people who only need to experience Project X one time.
With that being said…