The week before spring break everyone is sitting in class thinking of what to do when you finally do not have school work due the next day, and actually have some time to breathe. But what do you really do with your time off? Day dreaming during class about everything that you’re going to do during break is much different than what actually happens when you are finally at home. It’s easy to picture yourself on a beach somewhere, soaking up the sun while you are sitting in a class. You might want to do everything, or you might want to do nothing. Regardless, things don’t always turn out the way you planned.
Expectation: You will see all your friends from home that you haven’t seen since winter break. A whole week off from school means you will have more than enough time to catch up with your friends you haven’t seen since the beginning of the semester.
Reality: Your friends probably don’t have the same time off as you. Your friends that don’t go to Monmouth probably don’t have the same week off of school as we do. And honestly, what are the chances that you really want to get out of bed and leave your house?
Expectation: You’ll take at least one day of your break to do the work your professor assigned you (even though you are supposed to be on a break from school).
Reality: You totally forget about all that was assigned over break until Sunday night. Just as you are about to fall asleep you’ll remember those assignments you got over a week ago and have to rush to get everything together before your Monday morning classes.
Expectation: Maybe you’re thinking you should take a trip for your break. You deserve it, right? After sleepless nights cramming for tests and rushing to get those homework assignments done, somewhere warm, tropical, and relaxing is the perfect scene.
Reality: The ideal trip you want to take is ridiculously expensive, and probably something you can’t afford with the money you make from your minimum wage job. Sitting on the couch is a much cheaper “paradise” anyway.
Expectation: You’ll go to bed early to catch up on all the sleep you’ve missed during the school week while you were fighting your tiredness to stay awake to finish the endless hours of homework assigned. You can get in bed early and sleep in as late as you want.
Reality: You will find a new show on Netflix to invest yourself in, and watch all of the seasons that are available to stream. And you’ll probably watch it all in one night, missing the sleep you thought you’d catch up on.
Spring break is your time to relax; it’s a full, well deserved week of no classes. Even if you do have that professor that assigned you more work than a regular week, you’ll at least get some down time. You have time off to do whatever you want. You have the opportunity to catch up with friends, or ignore everything for the whole week and stay in bed. Don’t feel bad about trying to do everything, and don’t feel bad about doing nothing. And if you are lucky enough to be able to travel to that tropical paradise, know how lucky you really are and enjoy your time away! It’s your time off and you can spend it however you need. It is a fantastic break from school that lets us relax before returning to campus and the horrific thought of finals coming upon us. No matter what you did over your break, having a week off of classes is a treat in itself, and seems to be exactly what everyone needs.
