The month of March is symbolic for many things: the end of winter, the beginning of spring and a week off of school. But, for many high school seniors it is a month of both ups and downs. That’s the only way I can describe my life right now, a roller coaster of the good and bad.

I feel as if I am in limbo. As I watch some of my friends excitedly finding roommates and visiting the colleges they have already been accepted to, a part of me wants to join them. I’ve been accepted at two state schools already. However, I am still waiting for the majority of the schools I applied to for notification of their decision. It is not easy to sit patiently while others seem to already know their plan for next year while the people in my life are inquiring about what’s going on with me. It is not easy to sit patiently and await a decision that seems to validate the four years of hard work I put into high school. It is not easy.

In addition to admission decisions from colleges, there are also the notifications about scholarships that I have applied for with the hope of having even a chance to pay for some of the schools I am interested in. It seems like almost everything happens in March or at least starts. The months of senior year, up until now, have been like waiting at the top of the roller coaster hill. Waiting for something to give. Then, March comes and you’re off, plummeting toward your future. You get the $2,500 scholarship and you feel like everything is going right, but then you aren’t selected for the $10,000 scholarship and you’re not sure what is going to become of you, your dreams and goals.

It doesn’t have to be this way, though. I get it. The introspective thinking, doubting, confusion and anxiety is a part of the package deal you may not have necessarily signed up for. However, you have to remember that this is the first step in growing up. Rejection and waiting will be a large part of your adult life. The college application process wasn’t meant to be easy for most seniors, but it is the culmination of your high school journey. So, just think of it as the last stretch of a long distance race. You are exhausted and ready for it to be over. Find the strength within you to make it to the finish line and finish strong.

Whatever happens, remember that it is for the best. Have faith in yourself. What you put into your four years won’t be wasted. It may not end up exactly how you planned it, but it will end with you on the right path. You have done or are doing all that you can, and it is no longer in your hands. The colleges that accept you and don’t accept you or how much scholarship money you win, don’t define you.

What defines you as a successful student is entirely up to you. Whether it be the organizations you joined, the people you developed friendships with, what you learned, accomplished or the dreams and aspirations you have for yourself, you make that decision. So, for all of my fellow seniors who are in the same situation as I am, please continue to “march” on. The end is near.