The clammy feeling of your hands makes it difficult to even write. You can feel your heart racing out of your chest as you contemplate how you have been using your time. Your stomach is stretching and spinning in circles and all you can think about is regret. Should I have reserved more time out of my day to work on this? I need to stop procrastinating. If I fail, it is ALL going to be my fault.

The minutes before taking a test or quiz, every person can relate to the anxiety slowly creeping up. Feet twitching. Wandering eyes. Uncontrollable fear. The education system places such a heavy emphasis on the importance of gaining an ‘A’ on a test that ultimately, it just results in endless dread. The way society is structured makes it difficult for students to find personal passions, but rather limits them from grasping new concepts. The standards make students believe that they can control all aspects of their life which also includes preventing every single mistake.

Reality is no one enjoys messing up or enduring hardships, but it’s a part of human nature and as cheesy as it may sound, we grow from our mistakes. Don’t be a victim of your fear because the only factor playing against you is yourself. Use your nervousness and turn it into excitement because there is always a possibility of discovering a positive in a negative situation.

For instance, in the graphic novel, They Called Us Enemy, George’s father, tries to preserve a sense of innocence for his children. On the ride to the incarceration camp in Arkansas, the Takei family explains how the situation is like a vacation. Successfully, George’s parents were able to place a positive connotation on a clear example of racial injustice. The children were able to feel at peace and were excited about this newly profound adventure.

After recovering from the World War II mayhem, George was not exactly “destined” to succeed in society. There was a plethora of hatred and fear surrounding Asian Americans that discrimination still trails all the way until today. He was a Japanese American, a MINORITY, living in California in attempts of pursuing the entertainment industry. Luckily for George Takei, he became prosperous years later, with his renowned role in Star Trek. His experience in the concentration camps is only a fraction of his life and does not exactly define how he chooses to live the remainder of his life.

High school is not going to be here that much longer, and unfortunately for the class of 2023, we lost a significant portion due to the pandemic. A test grade or quiz grade is a minuscule portion of our livelihoods and instead of wasting the time we have on this earth, pursue what makes YOU happy. The worst possible scenario is saying you will be happier tomorrow, but chances are, it might never happen. Live in the present and make the best out of it.