I’m taking a non-traditional approach to my blog this week because I’m feeling reflective. Tomorrow I head out of town for a final vacation on the East Coast (New Hampshire). I’m going to Dance New England’s summer dance camp, a place I have spent from four to eleven days every year (except one) for the past twelve years.
It has become automatic for me that the end of summer means I’m heading to dance camp. In fact, I almost didn’t go to camp this year because I had so much work to do, engagements on my calendar, etc. But this ritual of camp is so ingrained that a week ago I cancelled all my appointments and bought a plane ticket. The end of summer just isn’t the same without dance camp.
The end of summer also means fall colors coming, and crispness in the air. Apples flooding the farmers market where berries used to be. Thoughts of snow shovels encroaching.
Most important, however (yes even more important than dance camp), the end of summer means admissions season is approaching, and life is about to get even busier for The Essay Expert. For the past nine months I have been a resume writer and business owner, as well as a career advisor at the University of Wisconsin Law School. In a few short weeks, “College Admissions Essay Advisor” will move to the top of the list along with “Law School Admissions Consultant” for Kaplan.
I look forward to this upcoming time of year. College and law school applicants all have unique stories to tell, and I love learning and exploring them. I love working with students, helping them gain insights into their lives that they might not have had otherwise. I love watching people’s stories reveal themselves onto the page in a way that captures the interest of admissions officers because no one else could have told those stories in that particular way.
And of course I love helping clients get into the colleges and law schools of their choice.
I associate apples and fall crispness, even Thanksgiving, with the process of shepherding students into their next phase of life. It’s a rewarding venture and the results will flower with the spring. In the meantime, I’m heading to dance camp. I’ll have more bloggery for you when I get back.
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I’m curious… what does the approach of the end of summer mean to you? Are you a job seeker getting ready to buckle down in your search? Are you the parent of a high school senior getting ready to increase your encouragement for your child to write an essay draft? Are you a teacher writing letters of recommendation? Please share in the comments below.
My summers as an adult are so different than when I was a child. Every summer until I was twelve was spent at my grandmother’s house down the Jersey shore. Days were filled with the beach, tennis and swim teams. The same kids came every year, and so did their parents and in most cases, their grandparents. No contest, it is my best childhood memory.
Now I prepare for my son to start high school, my daughter to start her sophomore year at college. We spenta day at the Jersey shore this week, and I amazed the teenagers how this 53 year old could body surf!
The water was cold and rough with huge waves – I felt like a kid again.
I look forward to growing my business this year, making new friends online, and enjoying the beautiful area that we live in. The Delaware river reaplces the Atlantic Ocean as the close-by water source.
Although I kow my chidlren will have thier own memories about summer here, I do wish I could give them what I had. Not only the beach, but the community of multigenerational families; growing up knowing my friends Mom’s, and their Grandma’s.
Have fun at dance camp!
Ellen
Dance Camp-that is a worthy ritual. I love the fall,but I’m not ready for it yet. A Wisconsin native and recent transplant from Maine to Washington, fall is October,pumpkin festivals, and leaf peeping.
A very short fall posting from me. https://wp.me/pohHp-b4
This fall brings the senior year for our youngest son. The older siblings are already off to college. We’ve been transitioning to parenting adults for several years now. Just one year left.
For me, the end of the summer always brings excitement. I’ve worked in post-secondary education for many years and I always enjoy the buzz of students returning to school, cracking open new textbooks, meeting new instructors.
While many people associate the Spring with new beginnings, for me that “fresh start” has always come in September. I always look forward to this time of year – to new projects, new connections, and new clients!
I live in Australia, so we are the other way around. Our Winter has just ended, and Spring is in the air. We did not get quite enough rain this winter, and the garden needs it, so here’s hoping we get a wet Spring. All you guys in the US – enjoy your Fall.
Rosanne Dingli – author of puzzle thrillers
https://rosannedingli.blogspot.com
The end of summer ended with a 5,000 mile road trip of which, I really enjoyed..it felt like I had a summer..
I always like going to summer camp as a kid,,I always had fun – it wish there was a summer camp for adults so we can re-live our childhood or do it again.
Mair-Lyn
Nice to hear that someone has a good attitude about summer’s end. Fall truly is glorious.
Thanks for the lovely post!
The end of summer really can happen at anytime, it’s the end of those warm feelings of excitement. It can be meeting someone that takes your breath away, a life adventure that has new experiences and joy like your haven’t imagined with other people or the smallest things of taking someone to the airport very early when you have trouble getting up in the morning. This time is about how life is dying on the vine, where your dreams pass by, coldness is in the air and closeness escapes you. Profound sadness that time has passed you by. Your expressions go back into a shell for protection, they may come out again, but not in the same way. The warmth that was there is gone.