From The Editor’s Desk: The Gray Area Between Thanksgiving and Christmas

It’s a curious time to be a student. Unparalleled by any other segment of the academic calendar, the few weeks between the Thanksgiving and winter breaks distinguishes itself through both heightened stress level and seeming absurdity. 

For students who don’t hail from Chicago or the surrounding area, we find ourselves trekking across the country to return home for just a few days to celebrate Turkey Day, only to return to campus for a span of learning which somehow feels even shorter than the November break that preceded it. 

This awkward gray area marks both the beginning of the truly cold winter months and the semester’s end, forming a fairly nasty one-two punch. Meanwhile, students’ brains are often as close to being somewhere else as possible, with another break looming. 

Long standing holiday traditions and where they fall on the calendar are not the fault of Loyola or any other institution, but their closeness is particularly pitched when working within the pressure of a university calendar. We can take some solace in the fact we don’t attend school in the South, where students often return to campus after Thanksgiving solely for finals due to earlier state dates. At least “Week 15” presents some amount of breathing room.

But after the rush of papers, exams and stress dreams end, students are sent away again, this time for over a month. Sometime around Jan. 8 time begins to stand still. For most, it’s not enough time to get a job, but decidedly too much time to spend in stasis. 

If you find yourself inclined to get ripped off, you can pass the time by enrolling in a J-term course or two. But beyond the odd family vacation or a chance to rekindle connections from high school, for many the break becomes an exercise in counting down the days. 

Who my heart beats the hardest for are the underclassmen who have to abide by the rigidity of the whims of Residence Life and their dorm closure dates. Living off campus I have the option to stick around for a few more days to soak up the joys of a holiday season spent in the city or return early to escape the monotony of wasting away in my parents’ living room.

Despite the calendar’s unorthodox composition and the creeping cold, I hope finals exams aren’t stressing anyone out too much and everyone’s holidays have been merry and bright. As you wait to board yet another flight or sit in traffic on the way back home, consider passing the time with this week’s issue of The Phoenix. 

As 2024 comes to a close, we invite you to look back on the very best in film, TV, literature and music and recall prominent moments from this year through the eyes of our photographers on pages 10 and 11. Enjoy the break — we’ll be here when you get back in 2025.