It seems like we start counting down the days until summer on the first day of school. The first day of school is exciting because we cannot wait to see what the new school year will bring. We begin to get excited to see our friends that we don't get to see in the summer and we are even more excited when we get our favorite teacher or professor and then find out our best friend is in our class. But, then the morning of the first day arrives. We dread that alarm clock that goes off and we hate when the snooze alarm goes off even more. The first day is not as bad because we're excited, but we know as the year goes on it gets harder and harder to drag ourselves out of bed. We forget how tiring school can be and after one day, we are already exhausted and ready for bed.

So the countdown begins. We count down the days, weeks, and tests that are between us and the freedom of not having to go to school. When the number of days between now and the end of the year seems like a lifetime away, we make smaller countdowns until Thanksgiving, Winter Break, Spring Break and any other days we might get off during the school year. These smaller countdowns seem to help us cope with the larger countdown.

The end of the school year finally comes and we realize we are actually a little bit sad that it's over. We look back and remember the exciting things that happened during the year and we realize that no matter how much we say that we hate school, it's not always so bad. We can become sad because the end of the school year really makes the fact that you're getting older sink in. Now this was really exciting in elementary school because all you wanted to do was grow up. It's still exciting throughout the rest of your academic career, but there are also moments where it makes you want to stop time and be young again. The older you get, the worse this feeling gets. Time seems to fly by in high school and college. They aren't kidding when they say not to blink because time goes faster than you think. I remember playing knockout at recess in elementary school like it was yesterday and now I am about to be a junior in college. Where did the time go? While I am very content with where I am at in life, there are times where I miss being younger. I drive by the little league diamonds and I reminisce about the many years I spent there and all the memories I created. I drive by the high school on a weekday during the summer and I see all the cars of the athletes who are there for summer conditioning. It's bittersweet knowing that the end of a school year means summer, where you can finally relax, but it also means we're getting older and have more memories to look back on.

For those of you that are graduating from highschool, the end of a school year means that you are leaving your comfort zone. You are closing one door in your life and opening another. This might include moving, being separated from friends, ending an athletic career and much more. While you might be excited to move on, there are things that you are going to miss and there will be times that you wish you could go back to a certain moment in your life, especially if the transition in your life is a little harder than you expected.

For those of you that are in college, it seems like we are constantly waiting for summer to see our friends from back home, to get a home cooked meal, to not have to wear shower shoes but most importantly to get those dreaded finals out of the way. Then Summer comes and we realize that we won't be able to walk down the hallway to see our friends, we won't have our roommates waking us up in the morning because we overslept, and we won't have those team workouts that you didn't know if you would survive until you actually finished it. Let's face it, working out alone is not as fun as working out with your team. As much as I hate studying, I'll miss going to the library with friends because being stressed out with friends is better than being by yourself.

I challenge you to look at the school year in a different light. Stop counting down the days and start making them count. You're only going to be in this position in your life once. Enjoy the school year and the challenges it brings. It also gives you a chance to build new friendships, learn about things you didn't know would interest you and it allows you to grow in many different ways. Stop looking to the future at the end of the school year and start living in the moment because when the end of the school year arrives, you just might realize how much you're going to miss it and the experiences that came along with it.