I’m trapped in a doom-scrolling nightmare where every consecutive video is a nostalgic compilation of pure Halloween bliss, but it’s May.

It’s the end of the semester, and I’ve fought long and hard to earn the right to a fun-filled and relaxing summer. The hours of studying and cramming for an exam are in the past. It’s time to think about all the adventures I can fit into a three-month break.

Don’t get me wrong, I can’t wait to go to the beach and feel the sand in my toes while the cool ocean water washes over my feet. I’ll be anticipating watching colorful fireworks light up the night sky. I’ll be thankful for time to get in touch with my hobbies again without the looming threat of a due date.

Despite all of this, I can’t ignore the yearning voice in my head demanding a pumpkin spice latte and a witchy mystery to read. I want to make plans to go to haunted houses and meticulously craft the perfect Halloween movie marathon.

I’d like to place the blame on my relentless feed of AI-generated early 2000s Halloween POVs or the retro fall picture slideshows set to the tune of “Ghostbusters.” Perhaps the crunchy orange leaves and crisp harvest-time air reserve a special place in my heart. Maybe it’s neither.

What if my fixation on the spooky season is due to a completely different reason altogether? Could this just be one of the side effects of always searching for the next best thing instead of appreciating where I am?

I’ll admit that I’m a planner, a goal-setter, and a forward thinker. I have ambitions and dreams I can’t wait to accomplish. I count down the semesters, classes, and days until I can walk across the stage and claim my diploma.

It’s so easy to get wrapped up in what is going to happen or what I hope will happen that sometimes I forget about the exciting things happening right now.

I get to go out to dinner on a weeknight with my family and eat Mexican food smothered in queso. I can go on evening neighborhood runs and breathe in the charred scent of a backyard bonfire. I can still take a picture of the exact same creek even though I’ve seen it more times than I can count.

There are so many wonderful little things happening all the time. October isn’t the only magical time of the year. There may not be ghosts and goblins, but the magic of the ordinary and mundane persists all year round.

Sure, I could give in to my cravings for a warm fall treat and keep fantasizing about the day I break the Halloween decor out of its attic prison. I could fully commit and go full-on Summerween.

However, I don’t think I’ll do any of those things. I don’t need a Christmas in July, and I can wait until October for Halloween.

I know it’s just May, and I’m not sure how much I can limit the nonstop cycle of fall content, but I won’t wish away my time. While my mind may wander to a time of chilly days and colder nights, I will never fail to appreciate the here and now.

From now on, when I find myself mentally in October, I will allow it to fade from my mind and be replaced by the simple joys of the present season. I don’t need the next best thing; I need the best thing I have right now.