Ah, yes. It’s that season of my life. It’s the time in which my life is consumed by nothing other than college. I’m busy retaking the ACT, applying online, writing essays, asking teachers for recommendations, and quite frankly, I’m running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Of course, there is absolutely nothing I’d rather be doing.
Yeah right. Let’s be honest. Seniors are not excited about anything I listed above. In fact, it’s quite stressful. The fact that every choice I’ve made in the last four years, both smart and not so smart, will affect the rest of my life, is quite a heavy weight on my shoulders. Four years ago, sitting in my classes with my glasses, awkward tendencies and high anxiety, I would’ve never imagined that I would be here.
But I am here. In less than ten months, I will be leaving the comfort of my home to attend college somewhere else in the United States. It’s crazy to think that the year is going to fly by, and before I know it, I’ll be purchasing furniture and bedding for my dorm room and doing other college things.
It makes me question if it’s really worth it, as I’m sure many of my peers do. Are the tears, sweat, hard work and ridiculous hours going to pay off? Is the $100,000 my parents and I are going to pay going to be worthwhile?
My point is that sometimes it’s hard to figure out exactly what we’re going to do in the future. We sit here and get pounded over the head with the idea that we have to go to college to get a job. We have to go to an Ivy League university to get a good job. We have to be the scientist who cures cancer, or the next Steve Jobs. But in reality, most of us are just going to be normal people who need jobs, yes, but also need to enjoy life a little bit more.
I’m taking my own advice. I’m applying to colleges, 4 to be exact, and I’m content with the fact that none of them are Ivy League. As a prospective high school English teacher, I don’t need to go to Harvard to get my education. And although that may make me seem like I’m totally ahead of the game and prepared, I’ll confess that I’m struggling to decide if I’d rather major in theatre or journalism.
It’s important that during such a stressful time in our lives, seniors stop, take a deep breath and realize that no matter what, life goes on, that hard work pays off, and that all that pressure can only take us so far.