They say 'entrance exams are a team sport,' but sometimes I want a break called a strategy session [Yuuka Kazeto's Deep Breath Before Bedtime]

[To everyone reading this article]
This story is written in the form of a radio program (set in a corner of Yamaguchi Prefecture) called 'Yuuka Kazeto's Deep Breath Before Bedtime'.
I, Yuuka, the personality, have reconstructed the daily life of Denki Penguin in my own words. This work was created with the help of AI (Gemini), and I have borrowed its power for the descriptions of words and scenes.
I hope that in the moments before you fall asleep, you will enjoy this 'slightly special daily life' colored through my filter, as if you were listening to the radio.

Good evening. This is Yuuka Kazeto.

It's July, and even at night, the air, still holding some heat, taps against the window of my room. How are you all spending your nights? I'm sitting in front of this microphone with a mug filled with my favorite cold barley tea. These days, every time the ice clinks, I feel the arrival of true summer.

Now, we've been sending out programs with the theme of 'summer vacation' this month, and tonight I'd like to introduce a letter from a listener who is right in the middle of struggling through it.

Seraphim Condenser, thank you for your warm letter. And thank you so much for all your hard work every day...!

That phrase 'he who controls the summer...' is something we hear until we're sick of it, isn't it? (laughs). It feels like both school and cram school are ganging up to push examinees to their limits, so I really understand the feeling of wanting to shout, 'Isn't this a bit too much?' But I couldn't help but chuckle at the adult composure I felt in Seraphim Condenser's positive (?) take on using the scorching heat outside as a reason to say, 'At least I have an excuse not to go to the beach.'

Actually, I also spent my summer vacation in my third year of high school completely immersed in study. I was aiming for a general entrance exam that uses the Common Test, so that summer was truly desperate. Every day, I sat at my desk, staring down numbers and letters.

At that time, when I looked around, my classmates who were taking the comprehensive selection entrance exams were also coming to school almost every day. Since the comprehensive selection is a so-called 'within-the-year entrance exam' that starts earlier, the schedule was pressing down on them, and they seemed even more anxious than us in the general entrance exam group. They, in their own way, were holding their heads in front of blank sheets of paper for essays, or losing their voices practicing for interviews and presentations. Even if the exam formats were different, the intensity and anxiety were the same. Because we felt the different kinds of hardships each other was going through, I remember we encouraged each other without even saying a word, thinking, 'They're working hard today, too.'

Compared to the stereotypical youth of 'dazzling blue skies! splashing waves!' that the world talks about, the last summer vacation of high school spent holding a pen in an air-conditioned classroom might look a bit plain. If anyone were to say, 'It's a waste to spend your youth studying,' I would shake my head with all my might.

The time we spent gathered in the same classroom, sweating and working hard together toward the single big goal of 'passing the university of our choice.' That unique sense of unity that you can only experience at that time is exactly what 'entrance exams are a team sport' means, and I think it's a wonderful page of youth.

No matter which path you have chosen—comprehensive selection, general entrance exam, or designated school recommendation—the footprints of your efforts will never betray you.

Please take care of your health, and while drinking something cold, please run through this summer at your own pace. I'm rooting for you.

This month, we are looking for episodes related to 'summer vacation.' Please tell us about your own moments in the comments section, such as 'things you are planning for this summer vacation' or 'unforgettable summer vacation memories from when you were a child.'

Now, tonight as well, take a deep breath and let your mind and body rest slowly.

Your host was Yuuka Kazagashira. Good night.

If you'd like, please take a look at this too.

Thank you for always featuring my work.