It’s undeniable that university has a huge personal impact on every student that attends. It introduces you to people from around England, gives you a different outlook on life and helps to develop independence. You undertake new challenges and experience new feelings, but, at the same time, you also say goodbye to certain things at home. It might be your old bed, the family dog or your mum’s cooking. This isn’t to say they’re irretrievable. In fact, when you do see them again it’s important to make the most of it. Personally, I miss roast dinners.
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| I'm a big fan of roast dinners too! |
I often cook with my girlfriend at university. Not only does it cost less but we really enjoy spending the time together and making something nice in the evening. But that isn’t to say we’re amazing at cooking. It’s safe to say that we’re pretty good at making fajitas, but anything more complicated than a stir-fry and we’re punching above our weight. At the start of the spring term, we attempted cooking jambalaya, a rice dish with French and Spanish influences. In my recipe book, it is described as a relatively easy dish. We still haven’t mastered it.
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| Seriously stay away from the jambalaya |
I suppose this is one way in which I miss roast dinners – because I’m not skilled enough to cook it, I don’t eat it away from home. But there’s also a psychological element in it. The majority of roast dinners I’ve eaten have been with family which leads to an attribution between the two. Technically speaking, I am conditioned to eat roast with family. This might explain why I don’t like it at university.
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| Big respect for my Granny's roasts! |
So, isn’t it ultimately up to me to ‘get over it’ and just enjoy a roast dinner away from home? Surely it’s only a minor detail upon my life – I don’t wake up in the middle of the night in cold sweat thinking about roast dinners. Well yes, it would be an easy thing to overcome – but would I want to?
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| Did someone say Roast?! |
For all this talk about conditioning and being incapable of cooking it myself, isn’t it possible to take a step back and think, “I prefer eating roasts with my family”. And it’s not only because my mum makes the best roasts, but also because I get to spend time with everyone that I’ve left behind. If I were to eat roasts at university, aren’t I undermining an experience at home which I cherish?
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| The baby claims his first victim! |
Today’s lunch proved to me exactly how much I miss family life away from home. My grandparents came over and we had a great time watching the day’s midday football fixtures. My Granddad still thinks he’s my driving instructor and spent the whole day telling me how to drive to Ipswich and Heathrow – two big trips that I have to undertake in the upcoming week. The meal was also expertly handled by my sister with outstanding Yorkshire puddings. Even Harry had a few bites.
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| Bathed and ready for bed! |
So, with all things considered, I think the things we leave at home aren’t irretrievable – but there are almost certainly things we shouldn’t take away with us. In the case of roast dinners, I want to make the most of them at home before I start making them myself.
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| Happy Easter! |
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