Best summer
“SUMMER, after all, is a time when wonderful things can happen to quiet people. For those few months, you’re not required to be who everyone thinks you are... You can be grateful and easy, with no eyes on you, and no past. Summer just opens the door and lets you out.”
Deb Caletti, young adult fiction writer, beautifully captured the essence of summer for many young people in this passage from her book Honey, Baby, Sweetheart. Summer for the youth is like Christmas for children. It is one of the most anticipated seasons of the year. Even for those who are not young anymore, summer brings back fond memories of youth, of fun and adventure, and of coming of age.
Even if summer may mean vacation, break from school or leisure time for many young people, the season could be maximized for meaningful learning, personal growth and development. Instead of just having an itinerary of places to go to and a list of activities to beat the summer heat, here are few suggestions from the National Youth Commission to make this season more worthwhile and enriching but still fun and exciting.
1. Learn to swim Swimming is generally regarded as a competitive sport or a leisure activity. It is also an essential life skill especially for us Filipinos who live in an archipelago. Swimming is an important life skill in this age of global warming. By the way, drowning is one of the leading causes of death among young people.
2. Learn an heirloom recipe Summer affords young people the time and focus to learn new things. There are many opportunities for learning at home and in your community. Try learning a family recipe or your community’s specialty. Ask your lola to mentor you in cooking her leche flan or request your neighbor to teach you how to cook your community’s famous puto.
3. Volunteer By sharing your time and talent, you can help others and contribute to improving your community. Other than the fulfillment and psychic rewards, those who volunteer learn important life lessons and even skills in the process. Look for opportunities for involvement in your church, barangay, civil society organizations and local government unit.
4. Start a business Entrepreneurship and financial literacy are another important life skills that young people should learn. In this case, experience will definitely be a good teacher. To be safe, start small. Try a solo gig or get your friends on board. Other than the extra-income, this might just give you your life’s biggest break.
5. Register for SK Being part of the new Sangguniang Kabataan is also a great way to get to know face-to-face young people in your community. Go to the Comelec office in your locality to register for the elections in October. Exercise your active citizenship muscles. Listen carefully and pay close attention as leadership might call you this summer.
In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote, “and so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow fast in movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.”