A Realization After a Game of Mini Golf

My ideal way to spend a beautiful day is spending some time outside, perhaps having a picnic, bike riding, or enjoying some coffee under the sun. Today, however, my sister and I tried something a little different - mini golfing.

Naturally, I am an extremely competitive person. I wouldn't think  of going mini golfing because if I had lost, it would have ruined my day. After a failed attempt at a bike ride, we decided that mini golfing was our best option.

I hadn't been to Kimball Farm in years - the last time was in elementary school, when I went for a Girls Scout trip, back when I was only a Brownie. I was expecting a lame and incredibly easy course. We made our way to Westford with my friend Mark. 

When we arrived, I realized that I had completely forgotten what Kimball Farm looked like. It wasn't just a small course, but rather an entire experience on its own. There were bumper boats, a petting zoo, a snack bar and a gift shop. Normally I would've rolled my eyes and convinced myself that I was too old. But it couldn't hurt to relive a little bit of my Brownie days and maybe even win this game.

After paying, I picked a yellow ball, my favorite color. I thought to myself, how could I not win? And my competitive nature that I had been trying to mask was beginning to surface again. I was confident during my first few holes. I was doing well and had even hit a hole-in-one. But my over-confidence proved to be detrimental in the later holes. I was falling way behind. In the end, I think I lost by about 15 strokes. For fellow mini-golf experts, feel free to cringe. After our game, we grabbed some food from the snack bar and made our way home.

From my mini-golfing adventure, I came to realize that it's OK to do silly things sometimes. I don't always have to act older just because I've completed my first year of college. I realized that I need time to act like a child, to have fun and to not always take myself so seriously. In the end, it was an excellent way to spend the day outside. The sun was blasting and the course had beautiful scenery, even though it was mostly fake. Though I initially was hesitant to do something I hadn't done since I was a child, I was extremely happy with our mini-golfing trip.

So, while I am jealous of my peers who landed awesome internships this summer, I realize that I still have the perks of living a care-free summer. There will be more time to grow up, but for now, it's nice to know that I don't have to be a real person yet. I won't be interning or working at a company that will land me the connections I need in the future. I won't be waking up early, grabbing coffee and acting like a professional this summer. But what I will be doing is enjoying my last summer of freedom from responsibilities.

And that's exactly what I need.