Spring Break was always one of those things that sounded like loads of fun until you realize that it's not always that way for everyone. For some, spring break meant snow skiing, lounging on the beach, or even a class trip to The Big Apple. For others (me), it was just a week to hang out and try to find things to do locally.
Growing up, spring break felt like a dream for some. On Friday when the last bell would ring everyone was running as fast as they could to the exit. The teachers would all say something like, "Have fun on your trips", and I would say, "I will". The truth was, while other kids were packing their suitcases, I was reorganizing or rearranging my room and calling it a "project".
We had a "staycation" before they were even a thing! Here's the thing no one tells you as a kid: when your parents don't have money for the big trips (or they can't take off work), spring break feels less like a vacation and more like regular life, just without school.
No beach. No hotel pools. No dramatic airport stories.
Just you, your house, your annoying little sister, and some daytime TV that made the day seem even longer than school. There were no big trips for spring break at my house. We always hung out at home. Maybe take a day trip to the local museum, park, or if we were lucky, a trip to ice skate at the mall in Memphis or an overnight stay at our grandparents out of town (but they had no TV, so that was pretty boring).
The hardest part wasn't even the staying home. It was going back to school and hearing, "Where did you go?" "What did you do?" "Wasn't it so fun?!" And I would always try and come up with a way to make my break sound more exciting than it actually was.
Here's where the love/hate relationship comes in.
I hated feeling left out. I hated the comparisons. I hated wishing for something we couldn't afford.
But I really did love the simplicity. I loved waking up slowly. I loved being forced to be creative (even if was out of boredom). My annoying little sister and I made the best out of our at-home spring breaks most of the time.
Now that I'm older, spring still makes me feel a little bit of both. I see the vacations, the pictures, the perfectly planned trips. And I still feel the sting. But I also carry something else with me: the ability to find joy in not spending money, the creativity that comes from "making your own fun", and the appreciation for moments that don't cost a thing at all.
Here is the truth that I didn't understand back then.
Nothing was missing. We weren't "less than." We weren't behind. We weren't doing spring break wrong. We were just living a different version of it. And maybe that version didn't come with plane tickets or hotel stays, but it came with something just as real: imagination and the kind of joy that doesn't depend on a destination.
So now when spring break rolls around, I don't just think about where people are going. I think about the kid who stayed home and still found a way to laugh, play, and make something out of what they had.
And honestly? That version of spring break deserved to be celebrated too.
Much Love,
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