The End of Summer

Summer is coming to a close.

The first rainy season typhoon for hit last weekend and the weather bureau is predicting two more will arrive before May is over.

And with the month of June just a few weeks away, classes all over the Philippines will begin once more.

Kids from all over the country will troop back to their homes, apartments, and boarding houses in preparation for another year of schooling.

Beaches

Beaches are filled to capacity, now more than ever, by people who are trying to catch the last rays of the summer sun.

In similar places around the country, you will see college students partying so hard, you’d think they were on their last days on Earth.

Only to realize that is exactly what these kids feel, as lives endwith the start of classes in the next two or three weeks.

Malls

Malls are packed with more than the usual number of mall rats and teenagers occupying more tables at food courts where free WiFi is available.

As I sit in one of the center tables, I see kids with their laptops and netbooks open all around me. They access Facebook, Twitter, and browse through local gossip sites.

They have earphones hooked up to their netbooks or to their MP3 players, with the volume so alarmingly high, I can enjoy the music myself.

Everywhere Else

Everywhere else, the sights are the same – people rushing to squeeze as much out of their summer before it ends.

Office outings are booking trips, families are going to reunions, and malls are conducting sales to get rid of summer merchandise.

Everybody is in a frenzy, everybody is a hurry.

Start of Classes

When June finally comes in, schools will begin classes. One by one, schools will open their doors to throngs of summer-weary students who wish it never ended.

The first attendance will be checked by teachers, who will look just as tired because of the double duty they had to pull during enrollment.

And after two to four weeks of transition, life will get back to normal for everyone in the Philippines.

Summer for Foreigners

This exodus of locals will leave beaches all around the country empty and ripe for the throngs of foreign nationals who will just be coming into their own summer.

Trickling in at first then flying in droves, people from other parts of the world will start arriving to enjoy the country’s clean beaches and warm waters.

Then in two months, they too will go through the process of ending their summers and head on back home.

Ah summers; sometimes I wish they never end.