Summer Vacation Week 1: A Little Bit of Noise The week started with a bright blue sky that made my phone screens pop like crazy. My mom said I needed to relax, which is exactly what I wanted, but the real work was starting at 7 AM in the house. It’s a long start, mostly because of the alarm clock that is usually the same time every day, even when I want to sleep. I told myself I'd just listen to music, but mostly it was waking up my friends and trying to hit them with a blanket that wasn't nice. I spent the first two hours making noise. There was the classic "bang bang bang bang" from my phone screen, followed by the screaming of my feet on the hardwood floor, and then the shouting from my dad who was trying to wake me up. The house is always loud, but today it felt different because my friends were awake too. They walked into my room wearing only pajamas, holding big toys, and started talking excitedly about some game they found. I tried to keep my voice down, but at first I thought they were just talking about my homework, then they started talking about how I could be a "super hero" if I just followed their rules. It was a chaotic mix of excitement and confusion, and honestly, I don't think I could have done it any better. They said my name was "Super Zebra" and they wanted to see how fast I could run to the fridge while the fridge was frozen. When I finally got out of bed, my feet were sore and my back hurt, but I felt good about being active. I walked around the condo for about twenty minutes, seeing how the sun went up and how the shadows moved across the walls. It was a slow morning compared to the busy school days I used to remember, but I had a plan. I was going to go to the library downtown to borrow some books instead of just reading them inside my room. The library is usually crowded with kids who are bored, but today I felt like a pro. At the library, I needed to focus for the next three hours. Most kids here are asleep or just scrolling their phones until one of their friends comes over. But I found a corner by the window that was quiet enough to read without getting distracted. I pulled out a book about space travel, and I read about rockets that flew into the stratosphere. It felt like I was flying too, even though I was sitting on a couch. The librarian said I should check out a few more books, specifically one for my upcoming science project on renewable energy. She handed me a card with my name on it and said, "You are going to have a lot of fun with this." Later that afternoon, my parents brought me some sandwiches from the grocery store. They said they were going to cook dinner all night, so I could just eat the leftovers and watch movie trailers. I had a list in my head of what I wanted to do, but my brain was full of random ideas. I wanted to paint my nails, I wanted to learn how to code, and I wanted to go to an arcade at the mall. It was like this big list of buckets, and I was trying to fill them up with whatever I could think of right then. Mom said the best part of the week would be the arcade, but she didn't mention that there are many other places to stay busy. I also wanted to go to the park, but it was too crowded with other families having a picnic. I walked over to the playground instead, where I saw a bunch of kids playing tag with a giant balloon. I jumped up and down and sent the balloon flying high toward the sky. It stayed there for a long time, and I watched it go into the clouds for about ten minutes. Then the balloon fell, and I laughed until I couldn't breathe. It was just a simple game, but it took a lot of energy and gave me a huge laugh. My mom said it was the best park we've been to all summer, and I promised to visit again when I'm older and have more money. The final day of the week felt a little different because I didn't feel like being perfect. I spent all day in the kitchen making something weird, like a big cake with frosting that wasn't white, and a giant cookie cutter that looked like a cartoon character. My dad said we should eat the whole thing, but I only ate half because I wanted to save it for party tomorrow. The party itself was actually really good. We had popcorn, movies, and a big game of tag where we had to carry a pillow around the room. I had to jump over a giant rug that was getting torn, and I fell onto the floor, but I was laughing so hard I couldn't stop. Even though the party ended and my feet were hurting, I felt happy. The week was short, mostly because I couldn't sit still, but it was good because it was full of little surprises and a lot of fun. I don't know if I'll do it again, but I'm pretty sure I will come back for the summer movies I saw last week. Maybe I'll write a paper soon about how good it is to make new friends and do things that aren't on the list of homework. Life is messy, sometimes it's loud, but there's always something to do unless you get too tired. That's the kind of week I wanted, even if it wasn't organized like a school schedule.