As an international student, I am no stranger to homesickness. I may have found a new home in my college community, but nothing quite hits like home home. I was born and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia, which is 9,078 miles away from San Diego, where I am currently based. That translates to a 20-hour flight. Therefore, I believe that I am qualified to speak on the topic of homesickness. Although I have not discovered a panacea that could end homesickness once and for all, I know of several ways to cope with it.
First and foremost, a tried-and-true method would be to call your friends and family. This one might seem like an obvious answer, but it does help subside the pangs of missing your loved ones at least a little. Last month, I had a small Discord reunion with my friends, which definitely helped me feel more at peace with my new location and community. Sure, it’s not the same as seeing them face-to-face, but it helps to see some familiar faces while navigating and acclimating to a foreign place.
However, as someone who has friends and family in different corners of the world, arranging virtual meetings is easier said than done. I find myself calling my sister at 4 a.m. sometimes, which is only possible when I don’t have a mountain of work to do. Oh, and I have a roommate who I try not to wake up. Sorry, roomie. There are some ways to beat conflicting schedules and time zones, though.
Communicating with friends in different time zones can be very frustrating at times. A tool I like to use for more efficient planning is When2meet, a tool with which many college students are probably familiar. When texting starts taking up too much time and energy, just set up a When2meet. Doing this lets me visualize how my friends’ and family’s spare time may intersect with mine and figure out when would be best to contact them. That being said, there are times when we simply do not have space in our schedules.
If you are on TikTok or Instagram, you probably have come across Locket Widget, a mobile application that developer Matt Moss made for his girlfriend. The app lets its users share their pictures with other users and have their pictures be immediately visible on their loved ones’ home screens upon clicking send. My best friend (and semi-neighbor) and I have been using Locket Widget for months now. It makes me happy to see small glimpses of her life in London on my screen without having to struggle with time differences.
Unfortunately, Locket Widget is currently unavailable on Android, and that’s where BeReal comes in. According to their website, BeReal is a mobile application that simultaneously notifies its users to “capture and share a photo in two minutes.” My friends and I are currently trying this app out, and we have no complaints so far. BeReal and Locket Widget are both convenient, user-friendly, and certainly a must-try for handling homesickness.
Lastly, I enjoy writing letters and sending presents to my loved ones. My friends and I often split costs to make gift-giving easier and more budget-friendly, especially when it comes to celebrating birthdays from different continents. Make sure to label and time your gifts properly, though. Last year, the rice cooker I bought for a friend arrived a week before her birthday and without the greeting card I had made for her. Writing with pen and paper, packaging, and shipping may be exhausting at first, but it feels good to give and receive meaningful words and gifts.
Thanks to all of these coping mechanisms, homesickness is not too bad of a condition. As cheesy as it sounds, I’ve realized now more than ever that home does not always have to be a place. Home is not bound by space or time–it can be found anywhere and anytime as long as you put in the time and energy to keep in touch with those you hold close to your heart.