Homesickness

Rustown Art

The signs are there:

Frustration.  Anger.  Visiting home more often than is necessary.
Sounding blue. Being sick since we dropped her off.
Happy one week, saying she's not happy there the next.
Difficulty making social contacts past the initial few.
And stressing about money.

I know all about homesickness - I had a whopping case of it my first year in college.  And  my home life was not as warm as wonderful as hers.  My teenage  home was a war zone, where things were continually being broken or dirtied, my single mother barely able to make ends meet or get a handle on her kids and  barely speaking to me, charging me rent.  My siblings would either be running away from home, or breaking into my locked room  to use my phone and paw through my things.  As the only one of my group to graduate high school with good grades, involved in drill team, and holding down a part-time job, you would think that would have prepared me for the challenges of college.  But, no.  I developed depression, got an ulcer, skipped class to sleep, ate so much I went up two sizes, burst into tears at reading letters from my mother where she talked about such mundane things as getting the air conditioner fixed or how her garden was doing.
It was hell, but it got better.
And I so much want it to get better for The Girl.
So, I will send her care letters and packages to bolster her spirits.  Tell her I love her often.  Encourage her to keep plugging, have faith, don't give up.
And I will do some worrying, too.  Cause that's my job.