I’ve always told myself I wanted to go to college and major in something I love doing that could benefit me in the future. I was determined to get there, but until my sophomore year of high school I just hit an all time low that I have never felt before. I let my grades drop, personality wasn’t how it used to be, and I just didn’t have the love for school anymore. As it goes on I would just start telling myself I’m going to take a gap year like to really find myself knowing deep down I wanted to go to a college.

School was always a happy place for me; it just brought so much pride and joy out of me. After I moved back to Carbondale I started gaining myself again and getting back into the swing of things. I was joining clubs that I’ve never thought I’d join and enjoyed every bit of it, I met so many new people and started strong friendships. I tried to focus on school and do my work but some classes were just not easy for me to understand. 

One thing I really disliked about school was when you had to go talk to your guidance counselor,even though I still did. I dreaded it. I knew my grades weren’t up to how I wanted them or how they needed to be. Counselors would look at your grades and then say “have you thought about enlisting in the army?” or “ have you tried looking into a trade job?”. Those questions would just make me not want to speak any more. All it would lead me to say is no, I’m going to attend college.

I feel like every student should experience some type of college life just to see if they would actually enjoy it. College is important to me for so many reasons. you would earn more money with a higher level of education, You start to break out of your shell and take on responsibilities, That you might’ve thought you weren’t ready for. It might seem scary moving away from your family and starting over in a place you’re not familiar with but that’s preparing you for the future because once you graduate you could try and find jobs in state or outer state and you would still have to adapt to the new environment. I’m not here to say college is really a necessity to be successful in life, I’m just here to say you should give it a try and see where it takes you especially if you don’t know what you want to do after high school and their are only colleges that’s two years even if you don’t want to attend college for a long period of time. It’s never too late to go to college. Find yourself and Lead your own path.