The Anatomy of a Summer Vacation

I'd forgotten that there is a certain shape to a summer vacation.

This summer was the first I've had in a while. My last three summers were spent traveling, working or in a weird limbo between two institutions of higher learning. This one was what summers used to be: a strongly bounded piece of time between two relatively similar academic years. Though I was working part-time and, as a result, wasn't completely on vacation, this might be the very last full summer vacation that I ever have.


And so I got to thinking about how I could refresh that tired old prompt of What-I-Did-On-My-Summer-Vacation, and I came up with this–what I imagine a textbook would have to say about the progression of a summer vacation:


The following are the four general phases in the progression of a summer vacation. Depending on the individual's emotional and physical constitution, their length and intensity may vary but they are all, to some degree present.

1. The Academic Ebb: This is the period of time, more pronounced the further you progress in your education, when you know it's summer but can't quite rid yourself of the practices of the school year. Resentment colors a lot of what you do during this time (as in, "It's summer, why do I still have to grade mountains of papers?"). But there is a lighter side to the Academic Ebb. You're often as busy as you were during the academic year, but with activities such as end-of-semester parties.
2. Hibernation: The length of this period of time correlates directly to the level of stress in the preceding semester and inversely to your level of extroversion. As its name suggests, this period marks time when you enjoy simply doing nothing. "Nothing" could mean sleeping for most of the day, long walks or bike rides, or even hanging out with friends with no agenda. Perhaps it is a combination of all three. But during Hibernation, you journey as far away from your schedule during the academic year as possible.
3. Coasting: This period is usually the most enjoyable of the summer. Whereas Hibernation is characterized by an often frenetic desire to counteract the effects and schedules of an academic year, Coasting involves a return to some semblance of a schedule and, usually, a greater degree of activity. This could mean picking up extra shifts at work, planning more activities with friends or, simply, getting out more. This is the period of summer when you enjoy setting your own pace and choosing what activities to engage in, where you immerse yourself most fully in the moment, without thought of the preceding or upcoming academic years.
4. Climax: Like autumn in the year, this phase leads into the end of the summer. The academic year is visible and, if preparation is necessary, it takes place now. More importantly, this period is marked by a frenetic desire to take full advantage of the waning days of summer. The inverse of Hibernation, it is often marked by intense bouts of activity that never leave you completely satisfied. You may be so busy cramming activities into your day that you are unable to fully enjoy any of them, or you may feel exhausted by the sheer amount of time spent having all the fun that you think you will not have during the academic year. Even if you have the best possible end to the summer, it will only make you regret returning to your institution of learning even more.

So... what did you think of my textbook definition of a summer vacation? Does it describe yours? How could you write about What-You-Did-During-Your-Summer-Vacation without describing exactly what you did during your summer vacation? 

Read more of Rukmini's work on Floodmark.