By Lakesyn Melia | Assistant News Editor
So, you’re going home for Thanksgiving break. If you were at Baylor last year, going home for Thanksgiving was weird — we literally got up and left for the rest of the semester. If you’ve been here since before 2020, you didn’t even have a whole week off for Thanksgiving. This break is noticeably different than any other Thanksgiving break we’ve ever had, and it’s OK to feel indifferent about it.
Many people look forward to the joy of finally going home for a full week, but sometimes being home for that long, or being with family for that long, can be draining. It’s OK for your first thought of going home to be dread.
As childhood and high school friendships start to fade and college friendships grow, going back to your hometown can be lonely. In those moments of loneliness, we tend to turn to our phones and see everyone else we know having emotional reunions with all of their best friends. It’s hard not to feel like something is wrong with you for only having a friend or two, or even fewer, to reunite with.
I’m a firm believer in always finding something to be optimistic about. Personally, things at home aren’t going smoothly right now, and my best friend is going to visit family in another state for Thanksgiving.
I’ve been dreading the idea of going home for break, and I’ve put it on the back burner while I’ve focused on everything going on in Waco. Surprisingly, there has been a lot to do at Baylor these last few weeks, and I haven’t had to think about break very much. I didn’t even book my flight home until this week, which I really don’t recommend because flights become very expensive the week of a holiday.
With all these negative thoughts about going home, I’ve forced myself to focus on things about break that will make me happy.
First of all, you’re going to have a full week of no work. I say that even though I am definitely going to work on some of my final projects, but if I don’t get very much done, it’s not the end of the world. There are no deadlines during break. That’s something to be thankful for.
Second, Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on the things that you do have that you’re grateful for.
Even if you’re not happy to be home, or you feel lonely, it’s OK to celebrate the fact that you get to go to school away from home and that you’ve found reasons to be grateful in Waco.
