The Monthly

I’m very excited for summer, for the first time in a while. Of course, warm weather and not having classes is great, but mostly I’m looking forward to this summer vacation since it will probably be my last.

I’ve always taken summer vacation for granted, since I’ve never been without it. But I’m starting to think more and more about what my life will be like working year round. When I was younger, I would feel so sad for adults because they had to work in the summer and I didn’t realize it would be so soon until I was one of those adults.

This summer, I’m planning to find times for the things that are hard to do during the school year. I want to take guitar lessons and visit more of my friends. I’ve spent the last three summers focused on trying to get ahead and working on developing technical skills.

While it is great to prepare for new opportunities, I have the rest of my life to work and now I want to take the time to exist. I think too much of college is focused on moving to the next step, rather than soaking up the small moments.

I spent most of my time at Northwestern waiting for the next big thing to happen, only to be disappointed when it came and I missed what I was doing before. I never valued breaks and was constantly doing something to prove that I was worthy of getting opportunities. This led me to spend years working jobs and being a part of clubs that didn’t make me happy.

With only a year left of college and built-in breaks, I’m looking to live in the moment and spend that time doing services for myself.

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Twitter: @janeaAwilson