Pre-DWA Stress Syndrome

I've got a big day ahead of me.

I'm sure everyone reading is familiar with the Direct Writing Assessment. It's one of those big test days tommorrow at my school, and everybody is holding their breath for Hell on earth, hoping they don't get a crappy prompt. If I do, I'm screwed. Last time I got a three, but I constantly tried to change everything and made it worse.

Not only that, but I've got two assignments due tommorrow that I have absolutely no hope of finishing. It's not that their large, but it's out of my spanish and science worbooks, both of which I lost a while ago. So I'm calling up my friends, trying to get them to photocopy theirs and give it to me in the morning. I don't understand how I lose all my stuff. I'm only ever in two places where I have my stuff. Home and school. You'd think that would narrow it down, but nope.

The problem about high school is that the system makes us end up thinking that grades are the most important thing in our lives. Which it is to an extent, but this causes backlash on other aspects of our lives, such as our social life. I've probably imposed on a lot of people to try to save my grades. I feel bad to have to get people to photocopy things for me, or print assignments out for me, but what am I supposed to do?

Luckily for me, most of my friends have had this experience before, and can sympathize with me. But I can't help feeling I put a lot of pressure on them. To feel the weight of two peoples' grades on your shoulders. One is bad enough. But I do my best, and I get by with a little help from my friends. And I help others when they need it or when they ask. Even an enemy can borrow my answers if they ask for it and they obviously need it. Because I'm not one to sit by and watch someone fail and assignment when they could've passed, regardless of my thoughts about them.

So yet again, we end up in the Battle School. For those of you who have read Ender's Game, the more intelligent students learn that even though the students compete to succeed, the only real enemies are the teachers. And in real life, it's not always the teachers who are the enemy in real life, but grades as a whole. As students, we have to unite to succeed. Keep that in mind. Never be unwilling to "take one for the team" because when someone asks you for help in school, they're on their last string. They need it.


"I don't care if I pass your test, I don't care if I follow your rules. If you can cheat, so can I. I won't let you beat me unfairly - I'll beat you unfairly first." - Orson Scott Card, Ender's Game