HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!
Today is a day for many to celebrate romantic love. For me today is a day to remind family and friends that I love them. Simple calls and cards suffice, but I’m not going to lie…I love getting packages. Today I got three: a box filled to the brim with candy from my aunt, Hope’s Cookies (seriously the best cookies ever) from my parents and flowers delivered in a Dunkin Donuts box during class from a boy. Even though I am only an hour away from home, sometimes I still get homesick, and it is always nice to receive little gestures that remind me who loves me.
Every semester a few of my sorority sisters study abroad. Each semester, as a house, we mail them care packages. We include personal notes, candy, school newspapers and pictures to help them feel connected. One of my sorority sisters, Ellen, studied in Seville all fall semester. While there she received two packages: one for Alpha Gamma Delta and one from her parents. She said the packages made her happy because there were days when she missed home and American products. “Everyone would be jealous when someone got a package,” she said. As happy as the packages made the students, she also remembered that they made them a little sad because they reinforced that home was so far away. Another girl, Steph, loved getting a little piece of home when she received packages. She said, "My favorite thing in the care package was a giant jar of peanut butter. My sisters knew I couldn't get it in Denmark but was obsessed with it in America."
So today (or this week) reach out to friends studying abroad and remind them that you love and miss them. If you are feeling ambitious, send letters or a package with some of their favorite things. These simple reminders will help them feel closer to home and loved while overseas.
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