Taylor Long, of Indiana, Pa., did not think it was weird that her cherub roommate, Erica Petri, brought a teddy bear -- until Petri started talking to it. Petri greets Teddy every morning and tells him she loves him.

“I like it because he doesn’t talk back,” Petri, of Tenafly, N.J., said. “He’s a very good listener, and that’s a very good quality to have in a person. Or a bear. Whatever.”

Although many cherubs ventured away from home in summers past, handling the separation is personal. Some cherubs at the National High School Institute brought relics from their childhood, some brought photos, and some did not bring anything.

Katrina DeVaney, of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, did not bring anything, but said she wished she had. DeVaney missed Annie, her Raggedy Ann doll. DeVaney left Annie at home, afraid she would lose her life-long friend.

“In retrospect, I would’ve brought her,” DeVaney said. “I really miss her. As we get older, even if we don’t play with them that much, we should keep our special mementos. Their importance is not diminished.”

Marcus Schwarz, of New Rochelle, N.Y., brought the Curious George monkey he has had since he was a baby. It sits on his bed in Jones Residential College. Schwarz has been away from home plenty of times before, but he only brings George when he is going away for a month or more.

“It’s a superstition kind of thing,” he said. “I like to have it with me. When I’m packing to go away, I get nervous, and things like that make me more comfortable. But when I get there, it’s not really a big deal.”

Keelin O’Donoghue, of College Park, Md., had a more difficult time adjusting. This was the first time O’Donoghue had been separated from her close-knit family for so long. When she got to Northwestern and discovered she had a single room, she was apprehensive. Luckily, she came prepared.

“I have my mom’s yoga eye pillow for meditation,” she said. “I use it to sleep. When it’s over my eyes, I’m not creeped out, and I’m not scared of being in a room by myself.”

The eye pillow, along with photos, DVDs and a care package from her grandmother, has helped O’Donoghue adjust to life away from home.

“It sucked at first,” she said. “I’m very close with my family. It’s hard being away. But with the stuff I brought from home, it was like having a bit of Maryland here in Evanston.”