What advice would I give younger students? by Evelyn

What advice would I give younger students? by Evelyn - April 2016 Scholarship Essay

I can’t count the number of times my mom has said, ‘With age comes wisdom’ but as I get ready to graduate high school, I finally know what she means.

It seems my whole life I’ve always looked forward to the next chapter in my life, rushing through experiences to get to the next level. When I was in elementary school, I loved my teachers, my friends and my school, but all I could think about was getting to middle school and how wonderful that would be.

When I got to middle school it was so challenging, my friends were changing and making some bad choices and it made me so sad. Everything was changing so quickly and it seemed like my close group of friends was growing apart. I kept telling myself things would get better once I got to high school because the focus would be back on school and my friends would come back around.

Unfortunately, life only got busier in high school and with all of my friends getting part-time jobs and some electing to go to different schools, we were spending less time together. And once again, instead of embracing the chapter of life that I was in, I just move steadily and determined towards my next chapter – college.

I’ll graduate in just a few short weeks and it’s only now that I notice how quickly it all went. I wish I had spent more time just hanging out with friends and family instead of always daydreaming and pushing towards the future. Having goals and working towards them is a very good discipline, but I’ve learned that I need to balance that with appreciating what is right in front of my.

My advice to younger students, stay focused on your goals – but take time to enjoy your current life as well.