Across America, people celebrate Thanksgiving as a time to eat delicious food, spend time with family, and buy obscenely expensive plane tickets home (k maybe not that last one). But in college, Thanksgiving takes on a whole new meaning. Right when we begin to reach that point in the semester when we literally cannot deal, Thanksgiving rolls around and gives us a much-needed break. Many of us get the chance to go home for the first time since August and eat a real home-cooked meal.
As a senior, I’ve realized that like many things in college, the meaning of Thanksgiving Break changes during these four years. One year you can’t believe that your grades won’t drop if you miss a lecture, and the next year you skip half your lectures in November and hope your professor is still feeling thankful to have you in their class. It’s pretty easy to tell what year someone is based on their approach to Thanksgiving Break:
You’re a freshman if you…
- Email the professor that teaches your 3pm Wednesday seminar to double check that you definitely don’t need to come to class. You got the memo that Thanksgiving Break technically starts at 12pm Wednesday, but hey, you gotta prioritize academics first!
- Book your flight/train/bus home for Wednesday evening, and barely arrive home in time to have one full night of sleep before you’re bombarded with questions about college from aunts and uncles you had forgotten existed. Yes, I’ve made friends. Yes, I like my classes. No, I still don’t know what I’m majoring in, or what I’m doing this summer, or what I want to do after college.
You’re a sophomore if you…
- Condescendingly tell your freshman friend that only losers go home on Wednesday. You totally have the hang of school now.
- But also…you still secretly really care about your classes, so you’re only skipping your Wednesday morning class, and maybeee a Tuesday class. You also email your professor to apologize for missing a class, (“So sorry, my dad booked this ticket months ago”) while mentally applauding yourself for getting away with your brilliantly believable white lie.
You’re a junior if you…
- Think school is below you, and like, totally don’t care about classes anymore. You’re jaded #AF and will be skipping all of your Monday-Wednesday classes and peacing out the weekend before.
- Booked your trip home in August because you were so excited to be missing a full week.
You’re a senior if you…
- Are literally taking the entire month of November off, and could not care less if this causes anyone difficulties. What’s another absence in that Monday morning lecture if you already have six?
- Forget to book your trip until a few days before and end up spending like $8,450 to get home. Whoops.
- Spend your time writing a Rib article that publicly shames everyone at your school, from first years to your fellow seniors, instead of using that time to make up for all the classes you are about to miss for your 4-week break.
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