How can someone handle all this weight? This never-ending pressure is slowly crushing me. If ever I get a chance to breathe, and stretch my spine, it ends when the weight crashes back down.
I feel like I'm treading water; thrashing though the rocky surface as waves push me under. I wonder if one day I'll drown as the pressure builds on top of me as I sink below the surface.
Like a struggling circus act, I'm juggling balls trying my best not to drop any because that would mean failure. The more balls I can keep in the air, the more people applaud and so, the pressure builds.
If I ever stop, if I ever pause, even for a moment, the weight will consume me. I'll drop the ball, I'll drown under the weight of all I've been juggling, struggling to keep up.
You need to keep up your grades, but they can't be all you care about. You need extra curriculars, to prove you have interests, but only because you have to stand out. You need a job, so you can pay for gas and college, but you also need to volunteer, because you have to give back to the community. You need to spend time with your friends and family, because you have to feel loved.
This is the weight.
It's inescapable, it's never-ending, and there's nothing that makes it better. Adults sometimes wonder how they ever managed to do it all; well, here's the reason: you have no other choice. It's sink or swim and if you sink, it's even harder to fight against the weight. Because the weight never stops.
Comments
I really appreciate this piece. I have felt this way many times. I was actually crying about this exact thing this morning. But my mom said this to me and now I want to say it to you. I want you to know that you do have another choice. You can say no to more things. You will be able to do the things you do choose well and pay more attention to them, and you will be happier. You might not have as much on your college applications, but what you do have will be very meaningful. Sometimes less is more.
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