Autumn signifies the beginning of the end. It’s the time where vacation ends, and we return to the place that nobody wants to be; school. No matter if you’re in elementary school or college, the first days back after vacation are brutal. You have to get back into that old dreaded routine, getting up earlier than you want and getting home later than you want. The air slowly but surely gets chillier, and your flannel that may or may not fit you anymore is resurrected from the back of your closet. Suddenly, everything in nature bursts in a colorful, final act of defiance, screaming “This isn’t the last you’ll be seeing of me!” When the trees finally lose their life, the dead leaves fall to make way for the barren branches of winter.

     Winter is death illustrated. It wraps up the end of one year and kick starts another, making it a time of reflection on the past and planning for the future. Your snow boots get taken out from under your bed. The Christmas decorations go up the first day of December and probably won’t be taken down until the end of January. The hot cocoa is thrown onto the shelves of your local grocery store, and is that Michael Bublé you hear over the intercom? It technically should be my favorite season; all of the holidays fall in line like dominos, and eventually winter ends with my birthday month. However, this is also when the first semester of school is coming to an end. With all of the deadlines looming over my head, how can I possibly enjoy this time of year? I’m already stressing about being halfway done with another grade level of school and slowly inching closer to college. But hey, I get too many presents in these months to complain that much.

     Spring alludes to complete rebirth. Or, rather, the rebirth of my allergies. Wanna enjoy the warm breeze on a sunny day? Too bad you’re too congested to smell the flowers or the vinegar solution we use to dye the easter eggs. Chocolate sales are off the charts for Easter, and you need to remember to buy a new bathing suit for spring break. Just imagine all the chilly rain you’ll get at that local beach you’re spending the week at. At least you’re finally on the edge of summer, the break that you’ve been longing for. You just have to get through standardized tests, finals and all of the end of the year projects. Then you’re home free, ready to become a grade level higher.

    Summer is preparation for what’s soon to come. It used to be a season filled with bug spray and sunburns, chlorine up your nose or fingers sticky with melted popsicles. Now, this is often the busiest time of the year for me since I’m an adult in the workforce. Over those three months, I’ve resigned myself to working full time at a job I only have because of the need for money. I put these shackles on myself willingly, trading my free time for paychecks because society told me to start saving early in life. This phase of all work and no play is only preparing me for the financial suicide of the holiday season. Of course, it isn’t all that bad. On lunch breaks, I enjoy my limited time in the sun. Maybe I’d grab a coffee at the Starbucks across the street or watch my coworker work on her summer art project, and this would happen routinely until the last week before school rolls up on us. That’s when it comes full circle, and so the cycle of life repeats.