School's Almost Out, Thank Goodness

We all remember those days during school when summer vacation was just around the corner, and you had your classmates were counting the days until it arrived. When I became a substitute teacher, I discovered that the full-time teachers and other school officials also were looking forward to summer vacation with just as much, if not more, enthusiasm, as the kids.

Let me say, as a writer who's covered high school sports for 13 years, I can't wait for summer vacation to arrive, as well.

Yes, I know I have the privilege of being paid to cover sports, and I remind myself of that every day. However, while this job has it moments of sheer pleasure, like others, it can also be taxing, which is why I and my fellow high school writers need some down time, just like students and teachers.

Trust me, it's not that easy to come up with a fresh angle every week—every day if you work for a daily—when you're covering a team. It's even harder when reporting on multiple teams, which is what a number of high school writers, including myself, do.

Are we using the same cliché over and over? Did we put in the same headline more than twice during the year? Is the same girl or boy getting their photo run too many times in the paper? These questions are in my mind with every sports edition I publish.

Granted, these are not earth-shattering problems, but they wear on you enough that some personal time is needed, which in my case, is June and July. Those two months serve to relax and recharge me, and when August rolls around, I'm ready to actually start covering school athletic events again.

Fortunately, here in Texas, high school volleyball commences in August, and, of course, there's preseason football practice, which means the king of all Lone Star State sports is not far away. It's also the month where we put together our annual gridiron preview issues. When those are done, like Hank Williams, I'm ready for some football.

For now, though, like kids and teachers, I'm counting the days toward the end of school, when I can get some time to kick and prepare for when the whole thing starts all over again.