I have been offered FOUR different jobs for the summer, some of which would probably pay better than the job that I have accepted. And without hesitation, I have told all of them "Thanks, but no thanks." Some have gone on to ask what I will be doing this summer, and when I tell them, I often get a puzzled look about why I'm lifeguarding, again. Most of them don't understand, but home is home.

This summer is going to be a summer of last for me. It's my last true summer, my last summer working at my childhood pool, my last summer spent with the people I grew up with, and the last summer in my hometown. Summer is my favorite season, no questions asked, but this one has a different weight to it.

Since I was 15 years old, I've been a Lifeguard at the pool I grew up at. (I literally got certified and hired as a lifeguard the day that I turned 15 years old). I grew up adoring the lifeguards, thinking that they had the dream job. I wanted nothing more than to be them - and that dream became a reality. For the past seven summers, I have gotten to live out my childhood dream, and I have loved every minute of it. Most guards will work there through their first, maybe second year of college and then go off and find a job that is related to what they are studying. Well I'm studying Recreational Therapy, and the University has it set up so that during your last summer (summer 2018 for me), you complete an internship and then receive your diploma. Leaving it more challenging to find a job in the field as a student.

So I continued to hold onto my dream. The kids that I grew up watching, became co - workers and close friends; my boss went from being my mentor, to my boss, to a close friend as well. The pool has become home and I couldn't even imagine spending my last summer of freedom someplace else.

I know I'm going to miss this place and these people next summer. And this summer I'm going to hold onto every minute that I spend at the pool, because you can't hold onto anything for forever; but I'm going to hold onto this dream until the very last minute.