Before graduation, I had all these grand plans for the upcoming summer. This significant time is romanticized in coming-of-age novels and movies for a reason: it is the summer after high school, but before college. You are truly free: no homework, but you do have impending college debt on the horizon. So, you try to make the most of these final months, which I aimed to do. I planned to work and save money. I planned to start morning walks and eat better. I planned to practice self-growth through my hobbies. I planned to go on a Big Spectacular Road Trip with my best friend, and tag along on a cruise with her family.
However, the end of May crept into June. June slipped into July. Within a blink of an eye, it was suddenly August. Move-in Day was only a few weeks away. I had accomplished nothing I aimed to do.
I worked, all right. I worked so much that my best friend and I never managed to align our schedules for our Amazing Grand Road Trip, which we had no planned destination for. Furthermore, the cruise topic dropped off the face of the earth after May. My attempts at morning walks morphed into late nights spent out; I ate worse, if not better. I did manage to surround myself with hobbies. If that means binge-watching shows on Netflix.
Does this sound familiar?
If you are in the same boat, well, I don’t know what to tell you. As you can see, I did the exact same thing.
However, on the bright side, while I did not accomplish everything I set to do back in May, I did hit some major milestones. I began writing for the Odyssey. I practiced my skills in pottery. I branched out in my friendships. I took risks. In conclusion, this Supposedly Grand Summer turned out like nothing I had planned or expected. Hopefully, you managed to surprise yourself, too -- if you did, then, surprise! This summer was not “wasted” at all.
If not, if you are completely disgusted with yourself, keep in mind that the upcoming fall can be a fresh start all on its own. This is the great thing about being human: we can have new beginnings and adventures whenever we want! We don’t have to wait until the New Year to begin that diet we found on Pinterest. We don’t have to wait until the next school year to become organized. We don’t have to wait.
So, perhaps this Grand Romanticized Summer was not at all what we had bargained for, but we do have this upcoming year’s adventures to look forward to (besides that impending college debt). That’s the thing about humanity: we always have our gaze set on the Next Best Thing.