They weren’t lying when they warned us about junior year being of the toughest year of high school. So far my junior year has consisted of piles of homework, numerous hours studying, hours spent practicing and playing volleyball, not to mention the chores I have at home, as well, which consist of keeping my room clean, washing dishes, taking care of my three-month old brother, and whatever else my mom needs help with.

My day is full of various tasks that are time-consuming. At times it seems like there aren’t enough hours in a day to finish up my homework assignments, but somehow I still manage, as being an AP student is a 24/7 job.

So far, this year has taught me that there will be days where I’ll have to sacrifice sleep in order to finish up my work. Especially since I decided that it would be a brilliant idea to take four AP classes – APUSH, AP Bio, AP English, and AP Spanish. Overall, my most difficult classes would have to be APUSH and AP Bio, because of the extensive notes, long hours of studying, and weekly tests.

Being a student-athlete this year has proved to be a difficult task.  I don’t get to finish my assignments in tutorials and my practices go on for 3 hours, which takes time away from doing homework. Game days are no better since it is unpredictable what time we’ll finish up. The latest we’ve once gone in a game was up to 9:30 p.m and that day I had the misfortune of having multiple assignments.

Because of this, I have made the difficult decision to not go through with wrestling this year. Wrestling is an exhausting and time-consuming sport compared to volleyball. You really don’t get a break from wrestling except for Sundays. As much as I wish to do wrestling because of the family feeling environment and the opportunity to go to CCS, I simply feel like I won’t have enough time for my school work.

Not only has junior had an impact on me academically and athletically, it has also affected me on a personal and social level. My relationship with my friends in comparison to last year is not the same.

Last year it seemed as if my friends and I were inseparable, we were with each other every day after school. Now we’ve become more distant to the point where I´ve lost, or feel like I’m losing, most of my friends. Our conversations have faded from talking every day about everything to getting a message from them here and there. I´ve been so caught up with school and sports that I don’t have much time to socialize with them.

In addition to not having any friends, I also won’t be having a relationship any time soon. Being in a relationship takes up most of your time, which is something I don’t have enough of this year.

On weekends, I don’t go out anymore and I spend the majority of my time at home, either doing homework, stressing about upcoming tests, and or worrying about who we’re playing next. My whole life revolves around school, volleyball, and home – I don’t have time for anything else.

Although this journey has been rigorous, if I had the chance to go back, I wouldn’t change my decisions. Yes, there are things I would do differently,  such as making time for my friends and managing my time wisely, but I’m still determined to make my mom proud and get into a good college. Even if it means staying up for hours and losing sleep and my mind for a short time, I’m willing to go through that challenge.