The sky is blue and the sound of little birds chirping from their nests is coming from the distant trees. A paper boy is headed down the street on his bike, delivering the printed news to each house’s front lawn. The smell of grass and pollen fill the nostrils and produce a lively sensation within the brain. Sunlight pierces through the breaks in the leaves of the trees and warms the skin. Happiness is felt through all.

I wish. This is how summer is portrayed in the movies, TV shows and every teenager’s Instagram story in the United States. But summer is hot, lonely and uneventful; at least it is for me.

Every summer starts out great. Freedom has been restored to the youth after nine to 10 months of school, keeping them locked inside. Students brains constantly collapsing by the expectations, deadlines, new information, societal views and feelings need a break every once in a while.  

School, sometimes a hardship, at least gives the students something to do. Summer on the other hand, leaves the mind open to boredom.

When I first get out of school, I try to hang out with my friends as much as possible, but then the summer plans start. Summer athletics, summer vacations, summer camps, etc., all cause loneliness for those not involved.

I could try to hang out with my one friend, but she is out in Bora Bora living her best life. Same thing with my dance friends, school friends, swim friends, even my cousins – gone and living their best lives.

Not only is that annoying, but the heat is unbearable. I think last summer there was one day the temperature outside got all the way up to 114 degrees. So everyone is sweating, I’m bored and all of my friends are not here.

Also, don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but I have allergies. A lot of allergies. So being outside already irritates me. My nose gets stuffy, my throat gets scratchy and I feel sick.

Summer is good in some ways, though. When friends are around, you can hang out with them on any day, at any time. It is mostly sunny outside every day so you could get a nice tan. There are a lot of positives, and a lot of negatives; however, I tend to focus on the negatives.

So every summer starts out great, and ends the same way. By the end, I sit at home by myself, watch a show on Netflix and eat chips. A lot of chips.