By Kasey McMillian
Reporter
My sister being here at Baylor during my freshman year was a God-sent; I leaned on her for a lot of things.
I’ve always looked up to her and relied on her to guide me throughout my life. The transition of moving away from home was easier for me than some freshmen because she was my home away from home.
Unfortunately life goes by too quickly, and she just graduated early in December. Now she’s all grown up with a job and moved on with her life.
And with her gone, for the first time I am experiencing homesickness and what it actually feels like to be living on my own.
I was so caught up in all the things that I was involved in that I made slacking in my involvement with the people that mean the most to me seem acceptable.
Now I regret not spending more quality time with her while she was here.
But I am majorly guilty of taking all the things for granted that grandparents, parents and sisters have done for me.
As the late Paul Pearshall, a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author, said, “Our most basic instinct is not for survival but for family. Most of us would give our own life for the survival of a family member, yet we lead our daily life too often as if we take our family for granted.”
Family has always been and will always be the most valuable earthly gift given to me.
I am very blessed to have such a supportive and involved family.
It’s not that I lost sight of that lately.
I just wasn’t making family one of my main priorities.
Baylor has opened so many doors for me, and I am so thankful every day for my family’s hard work and support by giving me this opportunity to be here. Even though it’s hard being apart, I know this is where I am supposed to be.
Throughout my personal growing experience, I’ve realized a lot of things about life.
I’ve realized just how fortunate I am.
I’ve realized that minus my family, I have lost a major part of myself.
I’ve realized how much my family means to me, and I have so much more appreciation for home.
I realized I took them for granted, I took time with them for granted, and I took seeing them every day for granted.
But I’ve also realized that sometimes people have to experience things on their own and be apart from the people they love the most to really appreciate them.
Sometimes we need something to remind us what’s really important.
I know we are all guilty of this, but don’t take your family for granted because you wouldn’t be where or who you are today without them.
Kasey McMillian is a junior journalism news-editorial major from Lubbock and is a reporter for the Lariat.
