Does Everything Need to be Perfect?

By:  Eileen Joseph, Student FCHS

I am staring at a blank page waiting for inspiration to come. Today, in my AP English Language and Composition class, we talked about what a eureka moment is compared to an epiphany. When presented with the task of writing this article, I guess I had the eureka moment without fully having the epiphany. How can someone write about stress without it being negative? But does stress have to be a negative? I have experienced stress in writing this article, first finding the time, than actually writing, that I should be an expert on stress. I am no expert, but I do know what stress is like as a high school student.

High school students may not appear to have much stress, I mean, we are handed everything, right? But with everything from home to school to sports to work, our lives exude stress. With pressure from parents, coaches, bosses, and teachers, teenagers experience pressure from all aspects of our society. Countless times, we are told to strive to be the best and to always try to be perfect. While some people thrive under pressure, many come up short. With parents, teachers, bosses, and coaches telling you that you can be better, although many do it with the best intentions, you feel as if you are holding the weight of the world. The responsibility is put on you, you have to be prepared for this someday, you are the future.

The growing responsibilities that come with becoming an adult coupled with all of the responsibilities of a high school student, many students are stretched thin. Whether it is earning money or studying for a test, driving a car or learning to drive, making dinner or playing in the championship game, there never seems to be enough time. Balancing life makes time management a necessity. Working around set times for practices and extracurricular activities, adding this to the varied workload of classes, and the mysterious scheduling of tests and projects all at once equals no time. I am not complaining about this, it is just reality.

I guess it seems like we are the lazy generation. We have all heard the same story, “when I was younger we got all of our information from books, and we walked a mile to school every day.” Yes, the Internet makes some things easier, but it also makes more knowledge more accessible, which means we are expected to know more things. Then there is the addition of social media, where we are all trying to look as good as possible, because after all we need to be perfect.

Expectations are the biggest stressor. Everyone expects you to be perfect, they expect you to be smart, responsible, and timely. Parents are not the only ones who push this, teachers, coaches, and bosses do as well. If you tarnish the perfect facade, can you ever forgive yourself? The answer is yes.

Stress is not caused by one aspect of life, it is a culmination of all things. Everything needs to be perfect. Perfection is so ingrained in our society that it makes it hard to accept the fact that no one is perfect. This acceptance is when most high school students have their eureka moment, though they may not have the full epiphany. We are always hungry for a new challenge, stress may come with it, but the outcome is all that matters. Stress can create its own adventure, but if we keep the end in mind, everything is worth it.

Falls Church High School
7521 Jaguar Trail
Falls Church, VA  22044
703-207-4000
www.fcps.edu/FallsChurchHS/

(Students who reside on the north side of Annandale attend Falls Church High School)