Essay on Summer Vacation

Summer vacation is the longest holiday of the school year. In most parts of India it comes in May and June, when the heat is at its worst and it is hard to sit in a classroom. I wait for it eagerly. This year I spent the first two weeks at my grandparents' house in the village. I bathed at the tube well, climbed the mango tree and listened to my grandfather's stories under the stars. Back home, I joined a swimming class in the morning and read story books in the afternoon. I did a little holiday homework each day so that it did not pile up. I also helped my mother in the kitchen and learnt to make lemonade. The vacation gave me rest, new skills and happy memories.

After the final examinations, every student looks forward to one thing: the summer vacation. In northern India the months of May and June are so hot that schools remain closed for five or six weeks. For us, these weeks are a gift of free time.

A vacation is not meant only for sleeping late and watching television, though I did a little of both. My parents and I made a simple plan so that the holidays would be both restful and useful.

The first part of the vacation was spent at my grandparents' village. Life there is very different from the city. The day starts with the call of birds. I went to the fields with my grandfather, saw how wheat is stored and how the cattle are fed. In the afternoon, all the cousins gathered in the mango orchard. We ate raw mangoes with salt and played old games like pitthu and hide-and-seek. At night we slept on cots in the open courtyard, counting stars. I did not miss my phone even once.

Back in the city, I joined a swimming class at the public pool. In the first week I was afraid to put my head under water. By the fourth week I could cross the pool. I also set a target of reading five books and finished six. In the evenings I cycled with my friends when the sun was low.

Schools give holiday homework so that we stay in touch with studies. I did one hour of it every morning. This way I finished it ten days before school reopened, without any last-minute rush. I also revised the tables and practised handwriting.

At home I took up a few small duties: watering the plants, filling the water bottles and helping to cut the salad. I learnt to make lemonade and a simple sandwich.

When school reopened, I had a tanned face, a swimming certificate and many stories to tell. A summer vacation used well refreshes the body and the mind. It teaches things that are not found in textbooks, and it sends us back to class ready to learn again.