I can’t help but say that this was, by far, the best summer ever.
From writing my second book to hanging out with friends I hadn’t seen in forever to going to New York to watching the new Marvel shows to going camping to having an amazing book release party, there’s nothing more I could’ve asked for. At the beginning of the summer, I wrote an article - How To Be Productively Lazy - which outlines how to make the most out of your summer while not turning it into a regular school/work year. The good thing about this article? It got over 100 reads. The other good thing? The fact that I actually followed my own advice.
Today, I’m going to take you down the memory lane of my summer. By the end of it, I’m going to motivate you to reflect as well.
Because every summer has a story, what’s yours?
My last day of school was June 16th. That week, we had to drop off our textbooks and laptop. It was a rather exciting yet sad last few days because we had finished our entire freshman year online. It was bittersweet - like “yay! Summer’s here!” but also “wait… I don’t get to meet my teachers…”.
That week, I also hung out (masks up and all) with some friends I hadn’t seen in a while or that I hadn’t ever met in person but became friends with during online school. I also completed the last class of drivers’ education and finished all my drives, which meant I was ready to take the knowledge and road tests.
For the first month of summer, until the end of June, I was just celebrating it by waking up late (like 7 am for me 😅), not doing much work, meeting friends, and having a great time. Then, July came around, and summer became busy.
From July 1st onwards, I wrote a chapter a day of my second book. I woke up at 5 am to work and usually completed everything by about 10 am after which I listened to my podcast, On Purpose with Jay Shetty, and watered the plants. It was only after 1 pm that I would go out with friends or the like.
I didn’t mind this routine, but it was just that - a routine. And as much as I wanted to break it, I made a commitment, so I didn’t.
On July 30th, my parents and I had our flight to New York, meaning I had to finish everything I was doing before then. I had some very tight deadlines to meet, and thankfully, everything went according to plan. I sent my book to my editors and hopped on the flight, hoping to forget everything for the next 10 days.
And that happened - I didn’t think about my book that much, only checking my email and taking phone calls here and there. The last 3 days of our trip were in Dallas, where I met my favorite YouTubers, Brooklyn and Bailey, and the entire McKnight family at Clamour Live.
Then, I came back, and the work picked up again. Most of my editors had gotten back to me so I started my revision process. And let me just tell you - I had only two weeks to compile everyone’s edits, then re-edit like 4 more times myself. So, I was… Stressed. Out.
I sent out the invite for my Book Release Party, posted about my upcoming book on socials, and managed to finish it all on time. I got progressively more excited when the RSVPs for my party started trickling in. I was especially thrilled when my favorite teacher responded with a yes.
The week leading up to the book release, we went “glamping” (glamourous camping) with some close family friends. We had gone to the same place with the same group of families eight years earlier, so going back again was really nostalgic. There was frisbee golf, volleyball, swimming, the campfire, the home-cooked meals, the Mexican restaurant, and celebrating our friendship through the memorable games every single day.
After glamping ended, I got home and was back to work, yet again. (It’s like a vacation, grind, vacation, grind type of thing for me :)). I was done with the book by this point, so all I had to do was work with my friends and family to prepare for the release party. And it was a success! You can officially buy both of my books on Amazon as both a paperback and eBook. (Book One and Book Two here!)
Now, it’s August 31st. I’m writing this article a day before school starts, thinking what a great summer this was. If I had to describe the past two and a half months in three words, I would say: Productive, Memorable, and Perfect. I wouldn’t change this summer for anything.
I’m wondering - how was your summer? What are your three words? What’s your summer story? Make sure to let me know in the comments below or by replying separately. I hope it went just the way you wanted it to.
Happy Summer! And good luck with what’s to come next. Whether that be school, college, work, or something else. You got this 💕
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