I have never been the girl who gets straight A’s in school. From 3rd to 12th grade, I had a tutor that I saw bi-weekly to help me with math and science. I stayed after school for homework help and most of the time finished the school year off with a C or two on my report card, but that was always okay with me and my parents because they knew I worked for it.
Once I got into college, things changed for the better. I didn’t do the whole “first-semester freshman” thing where you go too hard and party too much; I actually always put my nose in my textbooks, and it paid off. My first year at SSU, I made Deans list twice and I couldn’t have been prouder of myself because I had never had my name on any sort of honor roll before. It felt amazing to see my hard work pay off, and I wanted to keep that high going, but I fell short.
Beginning last semester, I set out on doing the same thing, making Dean’s list and applying for scholarships to avoid the financial burden. But unlike my freshman year, I came back to school in a different mindset than I had before. Yes, I wanted to continue to do well in school, but I wanted to experience college more than I had. So I joined Greek life, started to make more friends and go out on weekends. I was keeping up my long-distance relationship. I also had to worry about making my car and sorority payments which led me to find a second job, taking up a lot of my time and energy.
I wasn’t getting nearly enough sleep and I started getting awful colds at least once a month. I wasn’t exercising and I didn’t make enough time for my studies, which used to be so important to me. Because of all this, and much much more, I ended up failing a class. Before you think, “this is just her blaming every little thing on other circumstances,” let me explain. I knowingly took on way too much last semester and when it got down to the last month where I knew nothing would fix my grade, I didn’t give up. I kept doing my homework, going to weekly tutoring sessions and studying for tests, but it was a subject I didn’t understand. I stopped worrying about failing because I knew that it was an inevitability at that point and I came to be ok with it.
What this short, essay is basically about is that I failed a class and I am OKAY! It was a lower division GE that I will have to retake as a summer course so I don’t have that F on my record forever, I passed all my other courses with B’s and above due to hard and tedious work, and I realize now that that F doesn’t define me or my work ethic. My friends, my boyfriend nor my family think any differently about me. They know that I screwed up and that grade is a consequence of my actions, but I never quit and I will fix my mistake. What I am here to tell you is that if you fail a class, it’s not the end of the world! You will keep moving and striving and thriving, because as cheesy as it is to say, life consists of setbacks and it’s up to you to push through them and come out on the other side lived and learned.