In two short days, I get to spend Thanksgiving with my family, who I haven’t seen since I left home for college. Since I am from San Diego and I am so far from home, I do not have the luxury of seeing them often. I cannot wait to devour my Thanksgiving meal and eat my weight in pumpkin pie. I finally get to play with my dog, soak up some sun, and take a long nap without feeling committed to doing homework. Most importantly, I get to hang out with my family, who have no clue how excited I am to see them. While it is nice living on my own and making my own choices, nothing compares to seeing a movie with my dad, laughing with my mom, and playfully annoying my sister.
The reason why I am looking forward to seeing my family so much is because I miss them, their positive energy and their unconditional support. While I have always appreciated my family, I never really noticed the tiny things they do for me until I left for college. I thinks it’s safe to say that while college is great, it has its downsides. School is so much harder than it was last year and I can barely keep up. The only thing that keeps me going nowadays is coffee for the lack of sleep. When I was stressed from midterms, my dad sent me fuzzy socks, a new bathrobe and PJ’s, and my mom offered to fly out to Madison that week. These simple but meaningful gestures are what helped me get through the day.
Being away from home during this stressful period has given me the opportunity to reflect on what is important in life. It has especially made me understand how important relationships with others are. When you are feeling glum, it is easy to feel lonely. And if you are like myself, who has a terrible ability expressing feelings, it can feel like you are completely alone.
Just recently, I had a conversation with one of my friends who I know I have been hurting. I would often lash out on him because I have been having a hard time thinking positively and I have been taking my anger out on him. After we talked, I realized that even though I wasn’t being that good of a friend, he continued to be there for me. I took a step back and understood that while I was feeling so alone, I really wasn’t alone at all.
I think we tend to take people for granted sometimes. We can be selfish and forget that there are people there for us and that we should always be there for others. It is hard because we are all so busy and stressed out, but at the end of the day, no one deserves to feel like they have no one to talk to or that their kindness is being unappreciated. I notice that people, including myself, are so consumed with grades, work, and getting things done, that we do not stop to appreciate the people who are helping us get through the day. Instead we get mad at the 80 for being late and then fail to thank the bus driver who got us to our needed destination. We rant to our friends about how sucky our day has been and forget to ask how they are doing too.
I have also learned that even though our lives can be insane, it is important to continue positive socialization. Going to lunch with a friend and having silly, random conversations can be just as powerful as ranting about life. The time with your friends should be used to de-stress, not to create more anxiety. While I believe it is important to express your feelings and rant when something is bothering you, I also believe that laughter and positive thinking is what is going to get you through the day. Life is too short to be consumed with stress and negativity.
At the end of the day, the positive relationships you have are more important than that paper due on Friday. We need to thank those who become our metaphorical punching bag and allow them to hit us with their problems. Instead of focusing on all the stuff that’s bringing us down, we should be enjoying the time we have with our loved ones. Spreading positivity and appreciating those who are there for you goes a long way, especially when times get tough and college gets stressful.