The senior’s guide to spending your last summer vacation

For those graduating college next year, have you realized this is your last summer vacation?

This is good news – it means no more school, homework, labs, grueling and sleepless nights in the libraries, and living in a cramped apartment with five other people.

But also bad news – no more dorm life, hours with your friends, sorority sisters and fraternity brothers, parties, or joking around. It’s time for a “real job” and taking on even more of the “adult” life which consists of, and is not limited to, paying more bills, paying back loans, and getting up early for your job every day. All of this to finally (hopefully) achieve #goals.

What are your goals?

The summer before graduation should be enjoyed, but also used to reflect on what’s important. What do you do with your limited time before the inevitable comes and you start playing by new rules?

Here are some suggestions, no matter what future you choose:

Invest your time in someone else (fall in love)

If only… But seriously.

Go on dates. Meet new people. Meet that special someone. This transition into adulthood means also getting serious about relationships. Take all you learned from dating the past few years, apply it, and if you find someone different than all the rest, never let them go.

Also, go on a mission trip. Whether to visit the Navajo people in New Mexico or to the homeless downtown. Investing time in someone other than yourself while you have the time is so rewarding, and teaches you that it’s not all about you.

Learn how to cook

Your mom will be so proud. You can’t rely on the dining hall next year, so it’s time to get some practice in the kitchen. Challenge yourself and throw something together without a recipe and just with what you already have. Invite your friends over as your guinea pigs.

Hang out with your best friends

After the caps are thrown, the friends you’ve spent the last four years studying, partying, and having fun with are returning to a different part of the world. Also all your friends back home are graduating soon, and you’ll find yourselves in different cities after graduation. These people have stuck with you, whether during a school year or for just a summer. Give them your time. Time is the one thing we can never get back, but give gladly.

Camp/hike/roadtrip (Or get the National Parks Season Pass)

Go on road trip to visit your school friends. Get out in nature and enjoy the warm weather. Spend time with your hometown friends because it only gets harder and harder to connect and make time once we are all in different cities, working our 9-5 jobs or traveling the world. These are friends who’ve been with you through the last four years of college or through high school. Reminisce. Go to your favorite hang out spots, to the river, to the cheap restaurant with terrible service but the best food, or somewhere out of state.

Run a 5k (or more)

Push yourself to your athletic limits. This takes some mental preparation, but if you start at a half mile, and add a half mile every week, you’ll be conditioned by the middle of July. So not only are you accomplished, but you’re looking great by the time school starts again.

Finally, do all the things you’ve been saying you’d do ‘someday’

Go to that swimming hole, that concert, that bookstore, that hipster coffee shop downtown, the record store, the restaurant, make the model yacht… What’s your list? Do them all.

Spend time in your hometown (if you are planning on leaving)

I think no matter where we go, we will always miss whatever it was that reminded us of the place we grew up. The downtown, hot summers, the lake, the snow, the cute coffee shop, the people we grew up around, the park, the same sidewalk.

The sad reality

There’s never enough summer to execute all the adventures we want, but we can try. So get out there and make the most of this last summer vacation.