My friends already joke that I am the ultimate elementary education major, the mom of the group. Always checking in, making sure everyone is fed, making plans because no one else can seem to coordinate.
So this valentine’s day I decided to go all out. I put together little goodie bags filled with little trinkets to celebrate my love for my friends. The final product had: a heart shaped pop-it, two mini slinkies, candy, and a little note from me.
Why?
This might seem silly to some people. Or the thought of ‘you treat your friends like children’ might be popping into your head. And the truth is that it is kind of both. It is not that I put my friends on the same level as kindergarteners, but more that I think that everyone can benefit from a little child-like wonder.
College is stressful. Sometimes, you need to play with a pop-it when you are hanging out with your friends to distract from all the work piled around us. People forget that college kids are that: kids. It is hard and scary to be adults all the time. If a Target run and cellophane bags can make us all feel a little better, why not do it?
The reactions from my friends made everything worth it. The unfiltered joy that they got from being able to open the bag and do an unboxing for me was the best thing in the world. Each one of them forgot that they were adults with theology or physics or accounting homework for a couple of minutes and were in elementary school again.
That’s why I made my friends elementary school valentine’s!!