This weekend, I decided to go home for my family church's annual dinner. I was beyond excited to be going home for the weekend since I hadn't been home for about a month, but every time I go home, it doesn't really seem like home. Yes, it's the house I grew up in, my family is there, and it has all of my family's pets, but it feels different going back compared to when I actually lived there every day.

I think this feeling of home not really feeling like home anymore is a very familiar feeling for college students. When I set out for college my freshman year, I was afraid of being on my own and having to make my way into the world in-between high school and the adult world. I was going to have to become an adult or, at the very least, a pseudo-adult. I had to do things for myself that I wasn't used to doing by myself. I had to cook, make sure I was awake for classes, and worst of all, I had to talk to strangers on the phone when I had to figure out financial aid or I had a question. I had to do things on my own; I had to be independent.

When I go home for a weekend, a long break, or a summer, I'm not as independent as I am when I'm at school. My parents want to know where I'm going and what time I'll be home; I have to answer to someone else at home, which I don't have to when I'm at college. There are more expectations outside of the expectations I have for myself. I don't mind it for short periods, but since I've been in college for going on four years now, I definitely value that independence I have gained from moving out of my parent's house.

I've built my own independent versions of home while at college. Home is no longer just my parent's home where I grew up. When you're in college home isn't just one places, it's many. It's the house you grew up in, the house you're renting with some of your best friends, and wherever the people you love are. College is a strange transitional period of time. You're kind of on you're own but you might still have some kind of safety net so that you're not entirely on your own. I have often referred to myself as a pretend adult because while I am living away from my family and am on my own, I don't have any real bills other than rent and utilities. I know that will soon change. Right now, my home is the adorable house I rent with three of my best friends; however, I know that this time next year I'll have a different place that I call home. The friendships and relationships that resulted from college and the friendships I'll create in my next stage of my life are and will be some of best relationships to make me feel at home wherever I am.