Throughout grade, middle, and high school, no one ever wanted summer to end. Summer vacation was the epitome of freedom and the end of summer vacation was like slipping into hell. School was what loomed at the bottom of Summer's lake. However, for parents, it was their freedom. No kids around for most of the day? Who didn't love that?

So as school came around, kids would be gloomy and parents would be ecstatic. Then, you turn eighteen and you're going to college. A lot of things change. For one, school is much more tolerable. You have hours and hours more to spend doing stupid things like watching Netflix or lazing around with friends. You also have the weekends to do things you never tell your parents you did. School becomes the independence and freedom. Of course, this remains the same for parents but they end up being nostalgic anyway.

When I come back for break, I find myself having a good time, don't get me wrong, but I do miss school. I miss all the times with my friends and even the education. One thing I've come to truly appreciate is education since going to college. I've been challenged way more than I was in high school and it's been refreshing.

As someone who wants to become an English professor, I must prepare myself to enjoy the world of academe. Luckily, that isn't too hard for me and is one of the many reasons I chose to be a professor in the first place. I feel like I'm truly learning something at college and along with the actual schooling, I mean life experience as well.

That's not to confuse college with the real world, though. While they have been thought to be the same thing, they are not. College is a pregame to the real world. It's not as harsh or real as life actually is. If it were, people wouldn't want to go back. We want to go back because of how free but also easy it is relative to the real world.

However, I wouldn't recommend college becoming your prime years either. As fun as they are, they aren't your whole life. There will be more to do, more obstacles to overcome, and more experience to gain. And it's all worthwhile. Your whole life should be your prime.

When I'm on my deathbed, I don't want to look back at my days and only be proud of a few years in college, but to be proud of it all. I would hope others would feel the same.

And you don't have to be proud of some enormous success either, but be proud of having a happy life. It's cliche, but the goal to life is happiness and so despite the appeal of material success-- emotional success should be one of our biggest and most important goals to achieve.