Hobbies for a Fruitful Summer
Make your summer vacation productive by learning new things and engaging in different worthwhile hobbies. There are thousands of things that you can do, and always remember, summer is all about having fun.
Volunteer: Volunteering is an excellent way to spend a productive summer. You may visit an oldfolks’ home or an orphanage, help in cleaning up the community, parks, etc. It will not only make your days more eventful but will also give you a great feeling of achievement.
Internships: Internship during the summers offers many advantages to students. Look for internships in the area of your interest, in the field of your education. Start looking for them before hand. If you don’t get accepted due to limited slots, offer to help your parents instead at their work place or in the family business.
Travel: The lure of travel is appealing as well as a productive way to spend your vacation. Join summer camps, go trekking, visit places of historical importance. Keep a journal to scribble down your travel experience. Vacations combined with a favorite hobby add a little something extra to the experience. Plan visits to different types of museums to get ideas for scale model hobbies. Building scale model cars, trains, planes, rockets and boats are popular pastimes for many hobbyists.
Expand Your Knowledge: Learning new knowledge and experiences can make-up for what many would declare as a boring summer. Rather than wasting your time going around the mall doing nothing, why not start reading which can be done through E-books or through any book in paperback, or in hardbound form. Make a list of books that include famous fiction, non-fiction like biographies, success stories, or poems, inspirational, or motivational books. Another interest would also be in the form of writing. This will really challenge up your brain to be active despite the long summer break. You may also plan to enroll in music classes, or take up dancing lessons. Who knows you may bring out the John Travolta in you!
Play a Musical Instrument: The latest fad that is in today is learning to play the acoustic guitar. It is almost exciting to enroll with your friends and see who learns faster than the rest! Learning to play the violin and the piano are also cool instruments that one can take up during summer. Short courses are offered for these kinds of instruments even for drum lessons. You don’t have to be an expert, but if you get along to continue and pick up this fun, entertaining, and pleasurable hobby, for sure boredom won’t set in..in the long summer days ahead!
Beautify Your Home/room: Gardening is a hobby that is not only for the oldies, but one which you can take pleasure in doing. Tending a particular plant gives you a sense of fulfillment when flowers start to bloom. Pick up a brush and color a wall your room and think of creative ideas of making it more attractive but neat. Old family albums can be crafted into a beautiful collage, made up into a frame, and can be displayed on the wall.
Water Photography: It is now an affordable hobby for everyone with an interest in it. With a waterproof digital camera, vacationers can snorkel among the sea life and have beautiful photographs taken underwater to share with family and friends. Bringing a camera along in rafting and kayaking trips can get spectacular shots of nature at its best.
Photography: Photography isn’t what it used to be – expensive rolls of film have been replaced with tiny SD cards. Mini digital cameras have also that can fit in the pocket became the trend for awhile. This is the perfect time to pick up photography! For some, it almost is an obsession. Any photo taken with an intention is considered a good photo; more so if it includes or carries with it a delightful memory of a birthday, christening of a baby, Christmas celebration etc.
Wakeboarding: One type of water sport that has caught the attention of both young and old is wakeboarding. While it has just gotten into the limelight, wakeboarding has in fact been there for decades already. Some people may not be aware of what it is, but it is actually a combination of other more famous water sports like surfing and water skiing. It is a lot more exciting than plain skiing or surfing because it offers the thrill of being pulled by a very fast motorboat with only the rope as the control.
Scrapbook Making: Although scrapbooking can test one’s patience and persistence to finish what others may call a boring hobby, it is a recommendable idea for all age groups. With a scrapbook, you can cut, paste, add stickers, and virtually design any way you like. It can be like having to share stories of growing up together, and making it a real trip down memory lane. All you need is a scrapbook, scissors, colored papers, paste, and cute stickers, and you’re ready to start this simple hobby.
Baking/cooking: You don’t have to enroll in an expensive cooking school. You can start in your kitchen with a simple recipe book or surf the internet for baking and cooking lessons.
Fashion Accessories: You can start off with this easy hobby with just beads and strings to start with. Style it in any way you want, add intricate design, fasten it with gold, silver or bronze clasp, then you’re ready to make the next piece.
Painting: You really should give painting a try. This can be done in your own backyard. Painting helps release emotions.
Sculpting: Take a pottery class and get those hands dirty! Clay is an amazing medium to work with. You can make basically mold anything you want.
Embroidery: This hobby can be addictive; once you start with the needle and thread, there’s no stopping especially when the design gets to come out already. Choose the best yet easy pattern to start with before trying the complicated designs.
There are many ways to beat summer boredom. Keep an open mind for ideas that will complement an old hobby, or be ready to take on a new and an interesting one. It is always best to keep the body as well as the mind healthy, and this can be done by engaging in activities that will challenge both. (Jamille Lea – Ann C. Azanza)