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As a senior, I’ve made the trek to and from home for the holiday season a fair amount during the last few years. Complete with countless trips to the airport, the holiday season has always signaled a break from school, time to spend with friends and family, and time to decompress.
However, each year I return home from school, I start to notice more and more things that really put into perspective how much time has passed. For example, returning to my bedroom at home seems like stepping inside a time capsule that’s stuck in my senior year of high school. All of my cheerleading bows are hung up on my wall, my senior-night sash embroidered with sparkly glitter spelling out “Senior ‘22” is draped on the side of my mirror, the bottom of my prom dress peeking out from my closet, and even my high school diploma stands tall on my dresser, reminding me of how much time has passed since then.
Another thing that reminds me that I’m no longer a child is that my dad no longer puts up Christmas lights on our roof. When I was younger, I used to love watching my dad pull out his ladder from our garage and start hanging up lights at the beginning of December. I used to look forward to that moment all year long and would feel so honored when he would let me turn on those lights every night. However, now that my parents are empty-nesters, they no longer feel the need to adhere to holiday traditions, like hanging up lights, or setting up the Christmas tree.
I also used to love the holiday spirit that is present during the holiday season. I used to always watch Christmas movies with my family every Friday night during the months of November and December, religiously watch NORAD’s Santa Tracker every Dec. 24 with my brother, and even bake gingerbread cookies with my mom every year for Santa. Now, the holiday season feels just the same as other parts of the year, just a lot colder and with pretty colored lights.
Even conversations with relatives feel different now. The topics used to be along the lines of “What are you asking Santa to get you for Christmas?” or “Make sure to go to bed early on Christmas Eve” when I was younger, but it slowly turned to “Are you applying for internships?” and now, the infamous, “When are you applying for full-time jobs?” now that I’m finishing up undergrad.
All these differences between childhood and now, especially the differences seen during the holiday season, really made me realize that I’m no longer a child. It’s a strange feeling knowing that all of these memories are just memories and I won’t ever be able to relive that part of my life, but it’s also exciting to see what other memories I’ll make in the future.