Preparing for Thanksmas break in 2020

Well, it’s official everyone. We have a new President-elect—just in time for dinner with our families.

I don’t know about you, but I know that this means I can look forward to a very passionate discussion at the Thanksgiving dinner table—that is, if my family even celebrates this year in their state of conservative mourning.

Half of my family has health issues and takes the coronavirus guidelines seriously. The other half just wants to have a huge tailgate at a Clemson game again. Whether or not my family will feast together this year is still undetermined; while I’ll miss my grandmother’s greasy rice, I am certainly relieved that I might not have to hear my uncle’s many political conspiracy theories from his spot on the recliner.

In just a few days, Wofford students will be moving back home for Thanksgiving break—without returning for a few weeks of winter excitement. I think I can speak for everyone when I say that a break from classes, home- work and extracurriculars is extremely welcomed. But of course, that means we will be stuck at home once again, just in time to feel the results of the polarizing 2020 election results.

For me, going home isn’t so bad. I am lucky enough to have a space of my own at home, separated from my parents, both of whom have health issues that make the coronavirus even more threatening.

I can be with them when I want to, and I have the ability to take a break from them as well. I love my family, but let’s face it, like most families, they can be pretty irritating sometimes.

But for many others, I know that going home is not so easy, especially for my fellow Terriers who live abroad.

Besides the financial burden of travel, and the risks associated with it during a pandemic, there is a mental toll that comes with a return to home. Not long ago, we were all stuck at home for more than six months during quarantine—I doubt that any of us have forgotten that.

For many, the retreat from Wofford means walking into familial conflicts, isolation, economic hardship or potentially unsafe situations. It means sacrificing your mental health just to have a break from classes.

Everyone’s holiday experiences are different, but this year, everyone’s holiday experiences will be different. Not only are we navigating the normal holiday stress, but we will be reckoning with everything 2020 has to offer, all while being stuck at home in order to protect ourselves and others from the coronavirus.

I know everyone feels this too. It’s a little scary, and a lot to think about. Even for those who don’t feel welcome or at home at Wofford (as seen in the testimonies from @blackatwofford) that doesn’t mean that going home is any easier. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t; everyone’s experiences are different.

As we prepare for our final days of our first semester, let’s work together to focus on the one shining light at the end of the tunnel: when we come back to school in January, 2020 will be over.

With a new year comes a fresh start and a resurgence of hope. That does not mean that the fight for racial justice is slowing down anytime soon, or that COVID-19 is going to disappear when the ball drops on New Year’s Eve. But hopefully it gives us a chance to reflect on what we have learned this year, and what we can do to fix in the future.

2020 is a lesson, and 2021 gives us a new year to show what we’ve learned.