(Photo Courtesy of UBC Learning Commons via Flickr)
Photo Courtesy of UBC Learning Commons via Flickr
I have ten college applications sitting on my desk, and I’m freaking out. Meanwhile, my mom is in my ear like, “relax, relax.” I am not relaxed.
When my mom went to college in the Philippines, she was too chill about it. My grandma had to drag her to campus and make her enroll in classes. That’s just who my mom is: relaxed.
Meanwhile, I’m consumed with stress. I’m making decisions that might impact my whole future.
My mom thinks I need to calm down about applying for college. She tries to reassure me, by saying things like, “You’re young. You can change your mind.”
I get that she’s concerned about me. But my mom doesn’t get what it’s like to apply to school here in the U.S. She doesn’t know SAT, from ACT from GPA. I want to tell her, I’m not just overreacting to a stressful time in my life. College is more competitive than ever. It’s not like it was when you were young.
I know that I shouldn’t stress too much, but I can’t help it. Hopefully we can eventually come to some sort of a balance.