I can honestly say that this is an idea that I never thought would cross my mind; it is summer vacation and I actually want to go back to school. It seems my inner child who is overjoyed to be away from the grueling days of academia is being shut out by my inner college kid who longs to back on campus with his friends from school.

Please don't get me wrong; I love having this time to be at home with my family, home-cooked meals, and my own bed and bathroom. Getting the chance to reconnect with my old friends from high school has been fantastic as well. However, despite all the great things that have come with my being home for summer, I still feel myself drawn back to Marquette.

Throughout my summer, what time I haven't spent reconnecting with my old friends or going on trips with my friends or family, I've spent working at my old fast food job from high school. As great as it has been for me to return to work, make some extra cash, and see all my wonderful coworkers again, it has gotten to the point that I am very ready to be back at school and not working in fast food. I find myself at work thinking, from time to time, of my experiences at Marquette and I want nothing more than to be there again.

It would be worth noting that it seems that I don't so much miss school itself, classes and whatnot, but the experiences that came along with being away at school. Each day I find myself missing my days spent in the dorms, hanging out with all my friends and just in general having a great time. I think of the hours I spent playing Xbox with my roommate, going to the Annex for dinner on Saturdays with our wing, or staying up on Sunday nights to watch new episodes of "The Walking Dead" with the guys. It seems that the more and more I think about the last year I spent at school and all the great experiences I had, the more I want to go back.

I can safely say that I understand the great deal of hype that surrounds going off to college. My parents almost exclusively speak fondly of their time in college and repeatedly told me (and continue to tell me) of how much fun my time at school would be, specifically when they dropped me off on move-in day. My months spent at Marquette certainly cemented the idea in my mind that college was certainly for me and now my past few months at home away from school have shown me even further how much I love my school and the time I've spent there.

Marquette has introduced me to a lot of different experiences and people throughout my freshman year, and as summer vacation slowly draws to a close, I cannot wait to see what else it has in store for me in the years to come.