Summer is fast approaching and all of the stressors that accompany studying will soon be at a standstill. Get ready to throw those papers up (and recycle them soon after because you're not a terrible human being) and run through the halls like it's a "High School Musical 2" montage and there's some banister, somewhere, for you to effortlessly glide down.
This time of year, students find themselves in a constant daydream at the end of the school year, imagining and planning all of the things they want to accomplish within their three-month academic hiatus. However, summer in and summer out, for many students, myself included, the abounding imagination putters out as June goes by and plans are constantly put off.
After all, there are three more months! There's plenty of time to clear out the Pinterest craft-to-do-list, learn how to play that one instrument, or go to that farmer's market that you've been meaning to go to forever...
What do you mean it's July? Well I mean, I still have until August!
What?! Two weeks until school starts again?! WHY? NO! GET AWAY! NO, SERIOUSLY... DON'T YOU DARE! I'M MOVING TO CANADA. WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE ARE SCHOOLS THERE TOO? NO, I WILL LIVE AMONGST THE WOODLAND MOOSE AND STEAL THEIR WIFI!
Ahem.
To prevent this catastrophic existential Canadian fiasco from occurring once again, let a random stranger give you advice on what you COULD do!
Ask yourself some questions. Get real deep. Who do you want to be? What can you do to get closer to being that person? Should the concept of mortality be pondered upon in my everyday activities to make sure I'm not wasting my healthful youth?
Woah there hot-shot, you took it a little too far. Let's back it up and ask some simpler questions that will surely aid internal growth. You can (and should!) take this time to question yourself and think about what it is that you want out of life. Making small steps in the direction of your fulfilled self is always going to benefit you.
Try some of these questions instead:
What books have you been waiting to read?
Are there any events that will be going on in your area that you've always meant to go to, but never have?
What's something you've always wanted to learn how to do? Even just the basics of?
If you have a job (which is highly recommended since you'll be earning both experience and money), begin planning a little getaway for yourself. You can very easily plan a trip (even cross country!) for under $300 if you look for the right deals. I strongly suggest checking out Hostel World and Google flights to find the most affordable housing and flights. For example, there's a round-trip flight from Chicago to New York City for $79!
Instead of making another summer Bucket-List that is simply sad to look at once August rolls around, create goals for yourself to accomplish by the end of every month or get really zesty and set goals for every two weeks. *Martha Stewart gasps in awe at your savvy scheduling*
You'll be able to accomplish so much of what you wanted for yourself and feel amazing after having a restful and productive summer. Keep your exceptions realistic, but optimistic! You probably won't be able to learn Slovak in one summer, climb Mount Kilimanjaro, or become a world-renown shoelace connoisseur (hey, we all have our dreams), but you can begin the road to accomplishing these things!
I believe in you. So does Martha Stewart.
*I do not actually have any real evidence that MStew has some sort of intense intrinsic emotional feeling of support for you accomplishing your summer goals, but, like, just trust me. She and her pillows are so fluffing ready for you to rock it.
