“I just graduated from high school. Now what?!”
The majority of our Nashville/Brentwood/Franklin schools had high school graduation last weekend. Personally, I got to watch my little brother graduate on Saturday afternoon and my littlest sister graduate a few weekends ago.
High school graduation can be super anti-climactic. You are done with high school, but not done with school since you are probably headed to college in the fall. You are probably stoked to go off to college, but you’ve got a good 3 months until you go.
So what’s a girl to do?
1. Don’t quit your day job.
If you have been working a job while in high school, don’t quit yet. Work until the end of the summer and save every last penny you can for your college spendings. You’ll be so thankful you have some cash flow for starbucks, off campus meals, and movies. If you haven’t had a job, but can find temporary employment, do it. I promise you won’t regret make some last minute moola.
2. Spend time with your family.
It’s super easy to get wrapped up in hanging out with your high school besties 24/7. I know you want to soak up every last minute with them before you all go off in different directions for college, but please don’t forget about your family. Suggest a once-a-week family night dinner for the summer or an occasional game night or just do something regularly with your mom, dad, and siblings. Make sure that when you leave for college, they feel loved by you based on your actions and how you intentionally spent quality time with them over the summer.
3. Prepare yourself.
I’m going to suggest you prepare yourself spiritually, but you can choose another area if you’d like. For some reason, I always got lax in my bible study and just general spiritual growth every summer. Don’t get lazy this summer. You are only setting up the habits you will continue to cultivate in college. Last year, several of my graduating seniors got together once a week to go through a Nehemiah study. They were committed to studying the word together, desiring to grow their spiritual maturity prior to going to college. I can’t encourage you enough to follow suite.
4. Pray for something that only God can do.
This really has nothing to do with graduating high school and entering college (or is it EVERYTHING to do with those two things?). But I think this is always something great to do. If you read any of my blogs, you know I’m crazy about setting goals. However, as my dad reminded me yesterday, it’s even better to ask God to do things that only He can accomplish. So what do you want to ask Him to do this summer in your heart, life, relationships with your family, and so on? Ask God to do something only He can do and see what happens.