Just two short years ago, I stood in the very shoes most of you now stand. I had written, proofread, and rewritten countless essays and checked more boxes than I care to count. But most importantly, I had pressed that glorious – yet so intimidating – “Submit” button. My fate was in the hands of some distant academic counselors. Immediately after hitting the button I felt as if I completely forgot something or could have said something differently or better entirely. My nerves were obviously getting the best of me. How could I maintain like this for the duration of “the wait”? After about a week or so of anxiety getting the best of me, I realized that it was my senior year!
Applying to colleges and getting into that “perfect” college is such a huge part of being a high school senior, but I promise you it’s not the only part. These last few months of your high school career are so precious. You may not see it now, but you are living in moments that you won’t be able to experience again.
My advice to you as you struggle to play the waiting game is to take advantage of the moments that you have now. Enjoy your friends. You may not ever be able to share the quality and intimate times you do now again. Enjoy your school. You are in a unique place; a college campus is completely different from that of a high school. Some features are definitely better here, but you will definitely miss some characteristics of high school! Enjoy your family. You may be looking to move away for college. There are so many things that seem so mundane or maybe even annoying to you about your family now, but you will definitely miss them when you move away. Love on them!
In short, enjoy these moments that you’re in. You may relive some aspects of them, but I promise you they will never be the same. Never again at this same time and never with these same people. Take advantage of where you are, whom you’re with, and what you have at your disposal while you play this waiting game!