As exciting as it is to be back (or to arrive!) at Brandeis for the fall, there are certain things from home that we may not have been able to bring with us that we still hold true in our hearts.
I’m from Rhode Island on the coast, so I spent the majority of my summer (and most of them) by the ocean- my favorite thing being surfing, but also lifeguarding, paddle boarding or walking my dog. It is difficult to describe the sense of comfort I feel from the sound of crashing waves, because that simply is what I have grown up with and always known. Unfortunately, Waltham is not a beach town, but it is what it is.
My friend, Dylan Corn, misses the ease and accessibility of living in New York City, along with her new found passion of finding brunch places with her friends from home over the summer. Although it is not as easy as hopping on the subway, she wants to check out some places in Boston this semester.
My other friend, Madison Matthews from an outer suburb of D.C. misses being able to sing loudly in her car and playing basketball with her brother in her yard. Since she got here, she has been playing pickup games with some friends in a nearby park.
My roommate, Sarah Greisman, expressed that although she is not in love with her hometown from Connecticut, she misses her two dogs and discovered taking them skateboarding over the summer.
One thing that I have been trying since I got back to campus is exploring the surroundings of Brandeis because, let’s face it, it can be a bit suffocating to be on campus all of the time. Luckily I have a car, so I’ve made it an effort to make it into the city or in the surrounding towns at least once a week, whether to get food, find a place to swim while it’s still hot, go shopping, or just driving around with my friends. This weekend I am going to a beach on the north coast of Massachusetts with some friends, and hopefully it will feel a bit more like home to me.
We shouldn’t forget that Brandeis will be our home for the next three and a half months, so it is important that we incorporate what we can from our backgrounds to make it as unique and comfortable as possible.