As a senior in high school, I cannot help but want to break down in tears at the thought of applying to colleges, completing AP and honors coursework, while also balancing the extracurricular activities I take part in at the same time during the school year. The stacks of essays to write seem to grow taller every time I turn my head, and the amount of frustration and sadness does not just fade with every document submitted on Google Classroom. Luckily as exams wrap up, we are given time to rest up and enjoy ourselves. Not all institutions give students breaks, but regardless of length, any form of freedom from classes is a gift and is something you should take advantage of.

Even if you are not at Panama City Beach or Disney World like everyone else you follow on social media, a break can be spent hanging out with friends, spending time at church, enjoying nature, or even catching up or getting ahead on schoolwork. You can gain back those hours of sleep you lost while pulling an all-nighter for that Sociology test. The most crucial part of a break from school is being able to release all the worries and anxieties that might bog you down throughout a regular school day. Although you still probably have assignments to do in the meantime, at least you can do them in your pajamas or in your own time; there are no teachers around to breathe down your neck when you are annotating Hamlet on a beach in Florida.

Many might see breaks as lost time for learning, but in actuality it allows students to enhance their knowledge by having time to read, write, or do what they want for enjoyment rather than out of necessity. While school is in session there is little to no time allotted to enjoy non-required reading. Regardless, a break gives individuals the chance to do what could not be accomplished under the time crunch when prioritizing schoolwork, jobs, etc.. You might be surprised how productive you can be when you are not sitting behind a desk with a pencil in your hand. On the other hand, time off does not have to mean you have your head in a book or be writing the next hit Broadway show. Reward yourself: go out to eat, stay up late, wake up later, go to a concert. As Tom from Parks and Recreation would say:

In conclusion, if you are on a break right now, do not take for granted this chance to enjoy being almost completely separated from the academic world. Take a deep breath, you got this!