Hola!
I hope you are enjoying your summer and also resting from all the hard work you put into the semester. Today I’ll be writing about the experience of being far away from home while being in college and how it feels to be returning home for the summer.
Initially, my freshman year I was feeling very excited for the first couple of months. I didn’t feel homesick but I soon realized more months into college that I became very homesick as the winter kicked in because I’m used to the Phoenix hot sun. I also did miss the home cooked meals that my Mexican parents would make me. I also just missed overall being at home with my parents and my dog Toby. But I was able to overcome this homesickness by building my community on campus and finding very close friends that helped me feel at home. I gained a lot of independence while being so far away from home and I was able to learn how to do things on my own and not rely on my parents as much as I did in the past. I also felt very excited to embark on this journey. My parents were very supportive of going to a college very far away as they have always wanted me to live out my own dreams. But when I was dropped off my parents were very emotional and very sad as I am the youngest child and the last one leaving home. They also were very worried about my transition into college as I am first generation and I’m learning the process of becoming a college student. In order to ease these feelings for my parents something I personally did was have daily phone calls and video calls when possible on the weekends especially. My parents also did a lot of spontaneous Amazon purchases that were little care packages for me which always brought a smile to my face.
Being far from home can also help you build a lot of character and have a lot of development throughout your first couple of years in college. For example, as I’ve touched on before I have gained a lot of independence and have especially learned how to manage time, especially on the weekends when it’s my free days, but I also have to study and do my homework. I’ve also learned to build support systems through my friends and faculty when it comes to feeling extremely homesick. Also learning how to deal with stress on my own has definitely been something I’ve worked on especially being far from home as I used to rely a lot on my parents being my support system but being on campus I’ve been able to build and grow connections with new people and learning more about myself and how I deal with stress. Personally, being so far from home I’ve also grown to really love and appreciate my home state, Arizona. Every time I come home I fall in love with my city again and remember how much I truly miss living here, which also gives me an insight of the possibilities of coming and continuing my career in Arizona after college as I learn if I like the East Coast or West Coast better.
One of the biggest questions asked by others is whether you stay close friends with those friends from high school. My response to this is yes because you can definitely make it work even if you live across the country. For example, my friends from high school and I have been able to stay connected through our group chat, instagram, and FaceTime calls. I think it’s very important to understand the concept of growing separately but still keeping in touch throughout those time periods. Personally I think it also depends on each person but I usually am the type of person to go months without reaching out to someone but connecting with that person again and feeling like those months hadn’t gone by. But I think it is also important to reach out to your friends every once in a while and just catch up with them when you get the chance to come back home. It’s important to keep strong relationships in college with those friends you meet but also having that connection with your friends from high school is also important as well. I think something that is difficult for people to fully accept is that it’s okay to outgrow certain friendships from high school and or college. You change as time goes by and you keep growing throughout college. It’s okay to lose friendships because you will keep growing and networking with others and keep those tight relationships from the past.
For the next year, I still plan on using some of the tips that I have listed above, which are keeping close contact with those from home, especially my parents and high school friends. Also keeping those relationships with the people that help me feel less homesick and keep building my community back on my campus. As I’m going into my third year of college I have also started calling my own campus my home because I’ve been able to build such strong relationships and communities that have made me feel welcomed and at peace. At CUA there is a saying “home is where the dome is” . I can 100% support this saying. CUA has become my home away from home as time has passed.
See ya next time!