This time of year school is the worst. Classes have slowed down and we are all getting tired of seeing the same four walls day in and day out. At this point the only thing too look forward too is the feeling of the warm sun tanning your skin during the summer of your senior year. But this summer is different from all the others up until now. Before, you knew no matter what happened in those summer months, you had the stability of going back to school in early August. You would see the familiar faces of old friends you don’t hang out with outside of school. We all went back to studying the walls and posters that all you wanted to do was say goodbye too back in June.

But this year is not like all the others before it. In early August we will all be going our separate ways, not back to the stability we have known all our lives. Some move to different states, we all meet new people, and we all have new experiences. So we must enjoy this final summer together. It’s the last time we will see our friends in the same way. Sure, we can meet up with them on breaks but the conversations may never be the same. We can share stories of what we are up too and try to relate but we are all living different lives now. We are changing and this new life is shaping us into who we will be years from now. Some will change more than others. We will lose some of our old friends but gain many new lifelong ones while away from here.

In the end we will take those memories with us, the memories of that summer our senior year. Remember the days we spent down in the city or at the beach throwing a Frisbee around, our feet burning in the hot sand, and applying copious amounts of Aloe Vera to our sun burns. We will remember the concerts and road tripping to who knows where to go urban exploring or hit up some attraction we have been dying to see. All of our time will be spent with these people who have meant so much to us over the years.

This will be the paradise we remember. All those adventures will be what we talk about on breaks. It will be different for all of us and maybe some of us are more ready to leave than others. But we will all blaze a trail and find our way out into the world and figure out where we want to go. And who knows maybe some of our best friends will go off to do amazing things, or maybe that will be you. Either way we will never forget about these people. Then, maybe years from now, we will meet up with old friends and talk about that amazing summer we had our senior year.