As the summer rapidly approaches, one topic on many students’ minds is this: What is the best way to stay connected over the summer? There’s plenty of things everyone can do to maintain close and long-distance relationships over summer break.
The Harvard Study of Adult Development, the longest-running study of human happiness, found that strong relationships were the best indicators of happiness. This is why it is so important to stay connected during the summer.
One of the most important things to prioritize is simply staying in touch, whether that’s through phone calls, texting or making plans to spend time together in person.
The summer offers many opportunities to get involved in your community and take advantage of local activities. Consider making plans to visit places like farmers markets, attend events such as Marion’s free concert series in the park or explore the area’s trail system.
You might also plan outings like going to the local pool, spending time at a park or even going camping. Taking part in these activities is a great way to stay active, try something new and make the most of the summer months with friends.
Even if you’re not physically close to others, you can still stay connected by participating in online activities. Consider scheduling video calls, hosting virtual hangouts, playing video games or streaming movies together. These options make it easy to maintain relationships and stay engaged, no matter the distance.
It’s important that if you or another person is busy over the summer, that you still make time to catch up every now and then, talk about your life, ask about theirs and still keep that connection going.
The rise of social media makes staying connected with friends significantly easier, keeping friends and family only a message away.
While summer break is only a few months long, it’s easy to lose sight of connections you’ve made during your time at school. If you want to continue to maintain your relationships, it’s important to simply stay in touch, make some plans, shoot a text and show others that you’re still interested in pursuing a lasting connection.
Categories: Opinion, Staff Editorials
