Impatience

In a previous blog post I talked about how I could not wait for it to be February because everything would be done.  It is the end of January now, midterms are over, and every aspect of my college applications including the interviews is done.  I honestly thought I would feel so relieved, but instead I am more anxious now than ever.  

I have put all of my blood, sweat, and tears into my college applications and now I have to wait until the end of March/beginning of April to find out anything.  While it technically is only a couple months away, it feels like forever.  The decisions I will receive will determine where I spend the next four years of my life; who I will meet, what I will do, what I will learn.  I am excited but mostly nervous.  I have never experienced receiving so many important decisions all at once.  I believe there is good and bad in receiving all the decisions around the same time.  On one hand, it will be hard to deal with so much rejection at once, but on the other hand it will be nice if after receiving a rejection I can also receive even one acceptance.

I am the most impatient person in the world, but I am trying to put it all out of my head.  It is easy to speculate and drive yourself crazy over-analyzing your application and trying to figure out what is going on in an admission person’s head.  I am trying to remember that I cannot change my application.  I did my best and I cannot control the decisions so I might as well enjoy the end of my Senior year before I go back to being at the bottom of the food chain as a freshman.

Preparing for Launch Day

Saturday is Launch Day for Project 351 and for months now I have been preparing to lead my Service Hero Team and my ALCer mentee through a day of service.

What is Project 351?  Project 351 is one of the most amazing organizations and one of the hardest to explain. Each year, an eighth grade ambassador from every community in Massachusetts is selected for their service and leadership potential. As a former ambassador and current member of the founding Alumni Leadership Council (ALC), I have had the incredible opportunity to help guide the direction of the organization and mentor new ambassadors each year with their Project 351 service projects. I enjoy providing advice to ambassadors such as how to advertise for clothing collections and connect with food pantries for food drives. The ALC gathers at leadership summits as well as teleconferences in order to brainstorm ways to engage ambassadors in service and to plan Launch Day and Reunion. During Launch Day and Reunion, we each lead our team of ambassadors through team-building exercises and guide them through a day of community service.

At Launch Day we gather at the State House or in Faneuil Hall in the morning.  Throughout the years I have heard from inspirational speakers like Governor Patrick, Governor Baker, Bill Richard, Senator Seth Moulton, Robert Kraft, and others.  Then we go out to service sites throughout the city painting murals, creating scarves, and packaging meals for the homeless.  We then come back together to celebrate our service.

This year all ALC members who are Seniors in high school are on a council within the council called the Senior Leadership Council.  I was partnered this year with a younger ALC member to help her lead our team of ambassadors during Launch Day.

I have been going to Launch Day since 8th grade.  I am so excited but also sad because this is my last Launch Day.  I'll save my tears though for our Reunion; the last Project 351 event I will ever attend.

Let January End, Let It End, Let It End!

I cannot overstate just how excited I am for it to be February.  Right now, there is so much to do as the semester comes to a close and by February all this stress and worrying will be over.

Semester 1 grades are so important because they are sent to colleges and are the most recent representation of your academic abilities.  As the semester winds down, there are more and more tests and assignments that need to be squeezed in before the end of quarter 2 in addition to the midterms.  I cannot believe that this is the last time I will have to take exams in high school.  Obviously these are not going to be the last exams I ever take since in college midterms and finals actually make up the largest portion on one’s grade, but I cannot believe it was 3 years ago that I was taking midterms for the first time.

Besides quarter 2 and semester 1 being over, by the time it is February all my college applications will be submitted.  My last application is due February 1st and the minute I hit send, I will sigh a huge breath of relief.  Every year of high school has been a delicate balancing act between extracurricular activities and schoolwork.  This year has been even harder because I have had to balance college applications, extracurricular activities, and school work.  I do not want my grades to slip because semester 1 grades are important to colleges, but at the same time I want to make sure I am putting careful thought into every single supplemental essay I write for colleges.  These supplemental essays seem endless and are extremely time consuming.  Some questions ask why you want to attend the college, some ask about your extracurricular activities, and some ask fun questions like “What’s your favorite word and why?”  

Finally, I am most excited for February because of all the fun that awaits me.  In February I will be going on vacation during February break which is in stark contrast to what I did over December break: college applications.  February also marks the return of my favorite show on television, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.  Now that I am 18 I am old enough to enter the “lottery” to try and get tickets to see the show taped live in New York!

I cannot wait to get through January to the paradise that awaits me in February.