Scrabble on the floor of my bedroom, dips in chilly pools, the hum of a familiar white car. Summer only recently ended, but a seed of nostalgia had rooted itself in my stomach long before fall even began. I can still feel the roots of this seed growing inside of me, making up the branches of my veins. There are a lot of aspects of my past that I feel tethered to, but something that always lulls me out of the present are memories from the summer after my senior year of high school.
Maybe it’s just my tendency to romanticize things once they’ve passed, but I feel a special connection to the last few months. I used to look back on a lot of memories and remember the worst parts about them. From this past summer, though, what stands out most to me are moments of content. My heart feels so full when I remember just sitting on a rock eating crackers with my best friend. I hold on tightly to the moment when my Dad and I enjoyed lemon ice on the Amalfi coast.
I often fall into the temptation of fantasizing about my return to these moments, but I’m figuring out how to transform that sorrow into something that excites me for the future. The summer ended, but how I felt can be recreated. I have the ability to nourish the joy and content I felt and look forward to days when I’m with the people I love again. Life will never be the same as it was this past summer, but when I feel overwhelming nostalgia looking back, I also feel a sense of appreciation that I can feel that way. It is easy to fall into a cycle of letting despair put a damper on the present, but living in the moment–as cliche as it is–is what allowed me to feel such intense happiness this summer. I dreaded leaving for school, but I focused on the people and places around me and tried my best to savor every moment.
Joy is a paradoxical thing because it is also a source of pain. It’s hard for me to feel joy without feeling sadness that the moment is fleeting. But it is the transitory nature of life that makes certain moments so special. A part of me wishes that I could live this summer forever, but my memories have been made all the more sweeter by becoming something I can look back on fondly. Every single moment I have experienced has contributed to my current view of the world and live on through the actions I take. Nostalgia is a complicated feeling, but I’m starting to welcome it, appreciate its presence in my life.
Those cheese and crackers were pretty bussin I will not lie
Wow. I really love this passion blog. I think the feeling of nostalgia is something we can all relate — especially as brand new college students going through our first semester, and looking back on all our previous years of schooling. I have also thought back to the summer, however, maybe not with the same level of nostalgia. I think being able to take something we experienced in the past and appreciate it in the present, even as we no longer directly experience it, is extremely valuable and a good indication of both maturity and emotional intelligence. I think future blog posts like this would be great to see, and I look forward to it.
This blog post is making me nostalgic for pre-college life and not having to worry about classes. While I miss the summer and everything that came along with it, I rarely get sad at the fact that it’s over. Whenever I think of last summer, it just takes me to the thoughts of next summer and the fun I’ll have then. There’s something about the summer before college that means something though as it’s the last one before “life starts.” Now that I started college, all of my summers will be filled with adult tasks and that’s why we all miss this past summer specifically.
Your blog post is so emotive that it’s honestly making me reminisce about life before college. I think that the shift from life before college and life now, in college is a big change, and the culture shock because of that is severe, at least for me. The nostalgia that comes with those familiar faces, that now seem a million miles away is something a lot of us have to deal with, and despite the hardship of that, we have to power through to succeed in school. I think your blog is very passionate and the language that you use is very emotive and powerful.
Your blog is such a thoughtfully curated capsule of your experience here– I have also been navigating my journey with nostalgia, especially for my home while at college. It is truly a great thing to try to turn that longing into something positive and transformative. Personally, I think that will always be in the back of my mind– but there is so much more time to make new memories!