Aren’t breaks just amazing? It’s always enjoyable to have a few days off from the grueling work St Stephen’s gives, and it’s even more relaxing knowing that you’ll have a few days off school, or a week, or even a couple of months. Many day students have homes and places to go to spend time with family and friends, but what do the boarders do? How do they feel about breaks?

I interviewed four people of different grades and from different countries to find out. Two people conceded that as much as they crave going home, travelling is difficult due to living very far away and having to take time to adjust, which wiles away time that could be spent with family. However, all of them appreciate being in the dorms for long weekends/short breaks, considering they get more privacy and have more time to be around the city and explore.

Three of the interviewees stated that family dynamics are more or less the same at home and at school because of how often they called their family, while one of the interviewees expressed that family was more stressful for her at home since they wanted to do everything all at once. However, for most, family dynamics seem to naturally grow stronger both at school and at home, making their long breaks more intimate and special when going back home or when staying at school. Yet they collectively agreed that visiting their family during these long breaks is better than the facetimes they have every day, and, for this reason, they’re upset that they cannot visit home during short breaks. An interviewee stated that they use this time to explore downtown Austin, while a few others conceded that it’s a struggle to want to go home but it’s better than having to travel a long distance during such a short period of time. However, an interviewee said that the solitude of the campus makes it easy to study or have alone time during breaks and that it’s enjoyable.

As for me, the way I spend my breaks is similar to some of the people interviewed. I find the longer breaks, like winter, summer, or spring, to be much more special because I get to see my parents after many months. For instance, the months before winter break are long, tedious, and tiring due to the workload and time spent without family. But when the break approaches, I feel the exuberance that I hadn’t felt in months. For short breaks, I’m either on campus or I’m visiting extended family. Usually when I stay on campus, I miss my parents a lot. Whenever I visit extended family, it brings me an extra sense of relief, but it still doesn’t completely give me that fleeting feeling of joy I experience when I visit my parents. Breaks can be hard to manage for many of the boarding students in our community, but with the help of connecting with loved ones like friends or teachers, being halfway across the world doesn’t seem so bad.