Well, it’s officially time for summer which used to mean time for endless fun. It meant time for friends at the pool. It meant sleeping in as much as possible, sleeping over at your friend’s house or laying outside and getting tan while the guys got tan and played ball on the blacktop.
We would ride our bikes all over town or, if old and lucky enough, drive with our music blaring singing every word of every song we know. We wish to stay out late but our parents had us on those curfews that seemed so insignificant then. Summer when you are younger is amazing. You feel free and have no worries in the world. Of course you want to be older because you want more and more freedom. I know I didn’t want to ask my parents to do everything or go anywhere. I didn’t find it fair if one night out of many they told me no, I couldn’t go to my friend’s house, or no, we weren’t going for ice cream. Even so, I wanted to be older so that I could make my own choices without having to tell someone everything or check in with someone every so often. I can stay out late because now my decisions are really going to affect me, so I have to make smart choices. That’s not saying that they didn’t mean anything before but now I have no one to blame but myself. Your parents are not going to watch what time you are going to sleep anymore or for some people what time they come home. You make the choice to be tired for your 7 a.m. work shift or not. You are already thinking about what books are going to cost you next semester, and you’re still stressing about your grades that haven’t been released yet. I have to think about saving money for the school year so I can go to a movie, pay dues for my fraternity, or go out to eat with my friends to escape the dining hall food every once in a while.
After being in college for my second year, my expectations for summer have completely changed. You go into summer knowing that you need to work as much as possible so you have spending money for the next school year. It even consumes the adult life of fun. Every time a friend asks you to go out you are spending money.
Speaking of friends, how many do you still have at home? When you are away at school sometimes you forget that life at home is still going on. Before you know it one of your friends is in a serious relationship, one of your friends has their own kid and everyone has a job that is not a short ice cream shop shift. You now have to schedule specific nights to hang out with your friends. You also must plan out times you want to visit your friends from college. Life is getting closer and closer to full adult hood every day without us noticing. It has taken two years of college, but now I have noticed and yes, it can seem sad but we have many things to look forward to, such as jobs that we will hopefully get after college because of our hard work and being able to make our own family to add on to the one we already have.
Summer is still fun but, without a doubt, it also consists of plenty of work. That’s okay, though, because we are just looking at the next path of our lives, which is nothing to be afraid of. Whatever is meant to be will happen but it depends on the work you put into it. Work hard now, and it will follow you into your future endeavors.
Have a great summer and make that money!
