Summer is like Christmas. Just as a child eagerly waits for Santa’s sleigh, we dream of June days spent soaking in the sun. We dig out those swimsuits or plan those vacations. Then it arrives. The weeks are a flurry of activity: beach trips, summer camps, family cookouts. Suddenly it’s the end of August and we’re left in a daze, wondering why the days are getting shorter and stores are already displaying Halloween decorations.

I swear it was just last week when I took my final exams and piled the contents of my dorm room into my mother’s van. The experience I can credit for making my summer zip by? An internship with Mt. Lebanon Magazine.

Don’t be fooled by movie scenes of fetching coffee or running errands like in The Devil Wears Prada. Within the first week I had assignments, even sitting in on one of many lively editorial meetings. Whether out interviewing some of Mt. Lebanon’s outstanding residents or writing articles in an office staffed by such friendly people, I never tired of the experience. How could I not enjoy chatting with aspiring entrepreneurs in coffee shops along Washington Road or spending an afternoon in District Judge Blaise Larotonda’s criminal court? The hardest part was using only a few hundred words to capture the enthusiasm and passion of the people I encountered.

Seeing summer go is always sad, but I’m especially reluctant this year to dust off my Rubbermaids and return to school. I know I’ll be sitting in class, wondering what stories and pictures the magazine’s next issue will include.

All that’s left to say is thank you. Thank you to everyone I talked to, for allowing me to glimpse into your lives. Thank you to my family, for listening to endless stories about my day and giving me a passion for writing in the first place. Thank you to Asian food and coffee, for getting me through days when I want to revise every sentence I write.

Most importantly, thank you to the staff at Mt. Lebanon Magazine. I can’t thank you enough for welcoming me into your world these past months. You have helped me grow both as a writer and a person. No matter where I wind up after college—down the block or halfway across the world—you can be sure I’ll always be reading Mt. Lebanon Magazine.