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Cynthia Yeung

MOST PEOPLE would think that being away from my parents for about three-quarters of the year would make me homesick.

But that's  not  the case - except for the occasional longing for one of my mother's home-cooked meals.

I suppose this is because of my independence and my hectic schedule.

At my freshman orientation, one of my advisers talked  about the importance of getting involved.

By giving to the community, you will get a sense of belonging to your second home.

It reduces the loneliness of living on your own  in a strange land.

What's more interesting is how my parents reacted to my departure.

As I am the only child, my absence left a void in the family.

No longer were there magazines scattered on the coffee table. Nor  could my parents order me to clean up my room.

No longer was I hogging the phone by talking to my friends or negotiating with my father  over which television channel to watch.

I think my parents  have found life a bit boring without me.

But my absence has led to  somewhat of  a second honeymoon for them - to the extent that my father  became jealous of the attention I was getting from my mother when I came home for a visit.

I found that rather ridiculous. I was only home for about a week over winter break.

If my mother pays more attention to me than to my father for one out of 52 weeks,  it's not that bad, is it? Fathers  can be strange sometimes.

Also, my mother felt a need to replace me with something else, and she picked a plant.

My mother became very concerned when the leaves were tangled together or turned brown.

Although she trimmed  the dead leaves and made sure  the plant remained healthy, it soon became

clear that simply a plant was not enough.

She decided to keep fish as well. One of the fish jumped out of the tank while my parents and I were out for the day.

I'm l not too sure what to make of that.

Ms Yeung is a student at the University of Pennsylvania



Life adjustment