As I type away at my laptop at the Starbucks on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Swarthmore Avenue in Santa Monica, Calif., on a perfect 75-degree Tuesday morning, I think to myself, “What a week it’s been.” A simple road trip that started as a backpacking adventure at Yosemite National Park morphed into a 5,500 mile, 13-state jaunt across the American West. With no set timeframe in front of me, a friend and a plethora of possible places to explore, we made the most of our time. From trolling Vegas at 2:30 a.m. (still busy, by the way) to walking 13 miles around downtown San Francisco, this trip was truly epic.
While walking down the Venice Boardwalk passing the endless street vendors, hobos and stoners, I thought to myself, “Could I live here? What about in San Francisco? Portland?” This brought to mind a belief that, after taking this road trip, I truly believe: the best time for college students to break the mold and find out the most about themselves is the summer.
During nine months of the school, we students don’t have time to get away on extended trips or fun vacations. Throughout the summer though, there’s three long months that are just begging to be explored, experienced and discovered.
What is summer for a college kid after all though? To many, it’s about making the almighty green. To others, it’s all about vacationing and seeing the world. But to me, this summer, specifically this road trip, is about finding myself. It’s all about me delving deeper into my own psyche and finding out about things that aren’t readily available in the tunnel-vision world of college.
I’m definitely not trying to bash on college. It is pretty much necessary in today’s world. However, I feel like the summer is there for a reason. The sophomore and junior years of a college kids life is a time full of wonder, hope and most of all, confusion. Contrary to popular belief (sarcasm), a majority of college students have no idea what they are looking for in college or what they want to do once they graduate. With the exception of doctors and lawyers, most kids that are currently attending college don’t know what the next step is. After graduation, do they move back home? Do they look for a job? Do they mooch off of mom and dad as much as they can? These are questions that rarely get answered in the classroom and require something a little less monotonous then the day-to-day grind of the university.
Now, I’m not saying that all students should drop everything and take radical trips that change their life completely. But I am saying that getting out of ones comfort zone and exploring new places is beneficial to building character and finding out what life is all about.
Even if you’re not necessarily “looking” for yourself on a summer trip, something may come out of left field and hit you when you least expect it. The combination of adventurism, freedom and different weather has a strange effect on young people. They start to think radically and suddenly grow into these strange things called adults. Sometimes getting away from it all really brings into perspective what one needs to clear their head and really start focusing on what life has in store for them. Take it from me, a long trip with a good buddy does wonders for the mind and body. So allow your mind to find its own freedom, whether it be in the passenger seat or behind the wheel. One thing is for sure; your memories will last longer than you.
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pdxqzt 1 year, 11 months ago
Good point. I think I'll hit the road this Summer and see what kind of things I find out about myself. OMG I hope I don't find out I'm lame.