Senior stress isn’t the best

School is in full swing, and the excitement over sports events, special activities and classes is evident in my classmates, their parents, and the community.

It is quite clear there is still a lot of rivalry between the two high schools, but the ferociousness of the opposition that was seen last year has mellowed and is more friendly and respectable.

I am now a rising senior, and the magnitude of what that title holds has finally started to settle in. For instance, do you realize the stress that is involved when you are trying to decide on a career and a college?

My mother has been on my case about it since last year, and I hate to admit that I had started listening to her like Charlie Brown did when his teacher would talk to him on television.
“Wha, wha, wha, wha ...”

Seriously, looking at colleges, visiting and researching them among their peers, and then trying to choose one is a monumental task that has left me frustrated, exhilarated and confused,
all at the same time.

There are applications to fill out, scholarships to apply for, national exams to study for and the realization that there are still some holes that need filling in your resume to make it appear as perfect as you can. Big gulp (and I don’t mean the kind you get from a 7-Eleven).

I thought that I knew what I wanted to do, but now I am not so sure. Trying to decide on something that you have to be dedicated to in school for the next four to 10 years is an extraordinarily hard thing to do, especially when I haven’t had enough experience in any particular field to make an educated decision.

Little wonder that 30 to 40 percent or the graduating student population will decide to go directly into the work force or join the military.

Life would be so much simpler if I were interested in doing that, but I have set greater goals for myself. Those goals, however, are cloudy and in shadows at the moment, and it has only added stress to my senior year.

In addition to all of that, I am attending the Mountain Vista Governor’s School and participating in varsity field hockey as well as serving on the student council.

A big part of me keeps telling myself that, “This is my senior year and I wanted to enjoy it, take it easy, and have fun.”

Well, so far that isn’t exactly what is happening. But the other, more obnoxious, part of me keeps shouting, “Why are we taking all these hard classes? When are you going to start studying for those SAT’s? What do you want to do for the rest of your life?”

I feel like I am being torn in half!

It helps that my grades are good and I am exercising and enjoying sports. Running around a field for hours is a real stress releaser.

My mom has stepped up and is helping me whenever she can. I am now actually listening to her, and I realize I probably should have been hearing what she has been saying way before now.

My sister started college this year, and she has been helpful also.

I wrote a column last year about the need for juniors to take some time at the beginning of the school year and have their counselors review their grades and classes, as well as look at all the other aspects in their lives.

I can only re-stress the importance of this to not only juniors but sophomores and freshmen as well.

I look forward to the coming months as the answers and solutions start to come together.

Go Cyclones!

Bierhuizen is a senior at Eastern View High School. She writes an occasional column for the Star-Exponent.