summer lovin’

Last weekend I sort of had my last real days of summer. I mean, yeah, it’s still summer. But life and responsibilities and SCHOOL all start very very soon and so I decided to call those days my last and start looking forward to the fall semester.

This post is a pretty personal one for me – I had a fantastic summer and learned a lot about myself and others, and I don’t want to forget that. I have a few fun fall posts coming up soon but I’d like to close out the summer with this!

..I had a truly amazing summer. I made so many new friends, was constantly surrounded by wonderful people at all of my jobs, and got in a lot of time hanging out with friends from home. It’s been long and not so long, bumpy but smooth, a fun and serious summer. Dorky, maybe. But so true. I learned how to be happy and healthy and independent this summer.

For 3 years, I was with someone who was my rock. He was my pillar, and, a bit unfairly, the person I almost solely depended on for my happiness. Things didn’t work out and it has been so difficult to realize that and deal with it – there wasn’t any one defining thing that pushed either of us away from each other, which makes it harder in my opinion.

I also lived with two very close friends for two years in an apartment until this summer. Unfortunately, the living situation we were in did not bring out the best in any of our personalities and at the end of 2009 I decided to apply for the Learning Assistant position I have now and move back onto campus for my final year. The perks for this job are great (free housing!) but I also decided it was time for my next challenge. I really needed to get out of the negative environment we had created and start fresh. Meeting new people and trying new things is part of that.

This summer has slowly rebuilt my happiness with myself, and my respect and love for the people who surround me every day of my life. I learned that living alone does not have to be lonely – I just had to look for and make the opportunities to bring people into my life who could remedy that loneliness. Working 3 jobs this summer and living alone in a mostly-empty dorm could have been an awful, depressing experience. But instead it was warm, exciting, fun and helped me meet and get closer to some of my favorite people right now!

Self-fulfillment and actualization is a great theme to start the year on. Some links I really like on these topics:

11 things to do (and not do) when you’re burned out
You Have Not Walked In Their Shoes
Do What Makes You Happy
2 Ways You Think Yourself Unhappy (and 10 Things to Do About It)
16 First Steps to Creating The Life You Want From Some of the World's Best Bloggers
Bruce Mao's Incomplete Manifesto for Growth
How To Turn A Creative Brainstorm Into A Completed Project