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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Mass Amherst chapter.

This semester I have felt overwhelmed and overtired. The time for a break was now and thankfully Spring Break finally arrived.

While most people use their spring break to travel and explore, all I wanted was time to sleep and relax. Which is exactly what I did.

After a semester full of me piling my plate higher and higher, I didn’t want to look at any work from any of my classes for the entirety of break. Luckily for me, however, none of my professors assigned any work over break.

The majority of my week I spent watching new shows and crocheting, while also spending quality time with my cats who I really missed while at school.

Despite my resolve for rest and relaxation, I did venture to a couple of places over the break.

On the first day of my break, a friend and I traveled to Westerly, Rhode Island to take in the ocean breeze. But mostly we went to see the “Holiday House,” Taylor Swift’s Rhode Island home in Watch Hill. Surprisingly, as fans of Swift, we had never been to the house despite growing up in Rhode Island.

When Swift’s song, “the last great american dynasty” came out, my friends and I were ecstatic that she wrote a song about RI.

Exploring this little piece of RI that intersects with one of my favorite artists was so fun and I definitely will be returning in the summer.

After my trip to Swift’s Rhode Island home, I took some time for myself. I finally finished the checkerboard tote bag I was making for a friend and excitedly started my next project.

I later took some time from my self-prescribed rest to visit Diana’s Bath near North Conway, New Hampshire. If you have never been to this series of small waterfalls, I would highly recommend it. No matter the time of year, whether it’s winter or summer, the baths are truly a sight to see.

The site was once a sawmill, but its history goes much further. Before it had become a mill, the Abenaki tribe called the area “Water Fairies’ Spring.” By the 1860s, the site was given the name, “Diana’s Baths” after the Roman goddess. Remnants of the old mill are still present, showing you the area’s history. But it’s said, if you look into the waters, you may, for a second, see water sprites floating in the stream.

Now, while I didn’t see any fairies, I did feel the strong presence of the area, whether it was mystical or just the freshness of nature.

This was not my first time at the baths and it certainly won’t be my last.

For the last few days of my break, I turned back to crocheting.

I started working on a steering wheel cover inspired by Giyu Tomioka’s haori from the anime Demon Slayer for my roommate. I spent a good amount of time trying to learn how to crochet small diamonds that would be perfect for the design on his haori. After some trial and error (and many tutorials), I finally found a pattern that worked for me.

After a long and busy start to my semester, I really needed this break, and I think I got the rest I needed.

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Samantha Butts

U Mass Amherst '23

Samantha is a junior at UMass Amherst studying English and Journalism. She enjoys reading, fashion, watching movies, thrifting, and going out with friends. She is passionate about women's rights, the environment, and politics.