Summer School defined by The Merriam-Webster Dictionary is as follows: “a school or school session conducted in summer enabling students to accelerate progress toward a diploma or degree, to make up credits lost through absences or failure, or to round out professional education.”

Or in the words of college students everywhere, a school session in which you knowingly subjected yourself to hell.

At best, you made some amazing friends who helped pass the summer of entrapment you all suffered together. At worst, you spent your summer days drifting away from the exhaustion that was caused by the relentless professors who decided it was okay to teach everything they normally do in four months into one.

Summer classes are extremely intensive and ruthless to those who are daring enough to participate. You confidently dedicated your summer knowing you would have to say no to all the fun possibilities that come along with summer in exchange for staring at textbooks and computer screens.

This summer you started out strong. You made sure you went to class everyday and afterwards you did countless hours of homework and readings. Then you tried to get as much sleep as you possibly could.

You forgot the days of the week but always knew when Friday and Sunday were. Thanks to the campus you slogged upon, the only temperature your body is familiar with now is hot…extremely hot. Your friends no longer know what you look like and neither do you. You even found yourself contemplating the question of whether or not to cancel your Netflix subscription since you haven’t had time to indulge in your latest binge.

But after the countless meltdowns and the past two months of no sleep, you did it. You survived the summer heat, the loss of what could have been an adventurous summer, and the fact that your mental well being is hanging on by a thread.

But, again, you did it. You were either the person who decided to get ahead or the person who was scrambling to catch up. But whichever person you were, you put in amazing work this summer and you should give yourself more credit for the accomplishment that it was.

But now that you survived the disruption that was the best/worst thing you could do this summer, whats next?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You have ranging between one to three weeks to rest before the havoc, that is fall semester, begins. So use every moment you can to do absolutely nothing. This summer you accomplished what many don't even attempt to do. Take this time to try to revel in the success that you created the past two months.

Start a new a Netflix Binge, forget what sunlight looks like, sleep as much as you can in 24 hours, and make up for all of the missed happy hours that you traded in for coffee shops and late night studying.

Congrats on surviving the past two month and the hard work that was vital during it.

Now time to drink to our success.

Cheers,

Kimberly Ann Romero