The View from a High School Senior: Preparing for "Real Life"

Often, the potential in a graduating high school senior is visible, but what do they see? As a high school senior myself i have found the last several months to be extremely hectic; but the college search, scholarship applications, and financial aid paperwork have only been the beginning of a hazy path.

I decided at a young age, with the near death of my mother, that I would work as hard as I could to one day become a surgeon. I buckled down in high school, took the hardest classes, and maintained a 4.0 GPA, all while having fun. I was recruited by The College of Wooster to play football and that is where I decided I would go. At that moment I never looked back, until now. A few weeks ago I sat in my Honors English 12B course, a college course, and looked back at my decision for the first time. I was horrified by what I was thinking.

For the first time in my high school career I questioned being a surgeon; maybe surgery isn't what I want with my life; maybe I should look at some other career paths. So that is what I did. I talked to several people about why I had this change of heart, and honestly it scared me. I had my whole life planned out but at that instant things had changed. I decided the only thing to do was explore some options.

I knew I had a passion for writing, but I was ignoring it, pushing it aside, and labeling it unrealistic. Then with a strike of brilliance it hit me. I loved writing and inside I knew it was what I wanted for myself, that was the passion I wanted to follow, and for the first time in four years I thought of something other than surgery and with it came a sudden ease. It allowed me to step back and take a look at where I was headed, I now understood what people meant when they told me, "don't sweat it, it will all work out."

My advice to any high school senior who is "sweating it" these last couple months is to take a step back from your daily life. What is one thing you love doing? Where do you want to be with your life? What is your favorite moment from high school? I'm asking you to think about these questions and try to answer them the best you can, but don't worry if your answer is, "I'm not sure". If something makes you happy pursue it, take risks, make the most of your life.

College is a great tool for us to exploit. They give us all the means to succeed but it's up to us to take advantage of it. Don't waste your money in college, think of it as an investment. We're handing the money over now to one day become whatever we want to be. Why should we HAVE to go into a certain career path? Why do we NEED to know what we're going to do with our lives now? Sit back and enjoy the end of our senior year, make the most of every situation, and most importantly stay positive. As many people once said to me and surely someone has said to you,

"Don't sweat it, it will all work out."