Your first summer vacation on your own

With the number of days left until the end of the summer shrinks, summertime sadness is inevitable. The ending of summer is that time of the year when you sit outside, desperately trying to soak in some sunshine and sipping your drink oh so slowly because -ding dang dong!- September is just around the corner. Once you fall back into your year-round routine you’ll have to drop the alcohol levels -and no one’s happy about that.

These are the days we fall in a nostalgic fog and our mind keeps taking us back to summers that came to pass; all the cheerful yellow-tinted, salt-smelling memories come rushing back. Between the romantic trip you took with some lover and the hilarious family vacation where your whole family got sick, there’s one summer memory that stands out. It’s the king of summer memories, the one standing proudly on top of your memory lane and never fails to make you smile.

Your first vacation without your parents.

We’ve all been there; after the pleading, crying, nagging, breaking things and desperately trying to earn money; at some point our parents finally gave up. Defeated, they bowed their head and nodded bitterly for they had fallen prey to their teenager’s wishes; they had to allow their darling to go on vacation with their friends. Without them. To some far off exotic land -probably someone’s beach house that was an hour drive from your town.

Whether you were a fan of cabins, hotels and rented rooms or you preferred to take the route less traveled and go camping, I’m certain that when you look back to those days a lot of hilarious memories come up.

Who will ever forget the struggle to put up their tent? Ropes and cables tangled, your best friend underneath it all and you laughing hysterically because yes, they managed to make the whole tent collapse on their head. Or perhaps you’ve forgotten about that one time when you tried to turn the electricity on and accidentally ended up flooding the whole house? And the arguement that followed because someone had to tell the owner?

These days are tied to freedom.

The first time you were really able to do whatever you wanted whenever you wanted without having to answer to anyone. You stayed up all night long getting wasted with your friends and you decided to go to the beach at five in the morning to sober up. You screamed at the sight of bugs and gathered your friends to kill them only to have ten people running around a tiny lizard with frying pans and plastic forks.

For the first time in your life you had to learn how to really take care of yourself because there was no adult around to nurse you. And you didn’t care; you were happy because freedom has the sweetest taste. You didn’t mind the cooking, cleaning, carrying and getting lost in cities you’ve never been to before.

You probably lost a pair of sunglasses, a pack of new cigarettes and a couple hats on your way to the beach but you just laughed it off.

Admit it: No matter how many years will pass, the first time you took off on your own, without your parents to keep you in check, was a bit of an indie dream and you loved every second of it. It was the summer that you broke out from your child-cocoon and flew right into adulthood. Because even if you weren’t an adult, the summer you went on vacation alone was the summer you became more mature and aware of the world.

That summer will forever be stained in your memory with the blue ink of summer nights and the orange flash of sunsets.