TeenConnect: Trending July 22, 2019 Issue

Where are you looking for your worth?

Kaily Johnson

Originally appeared online in the teen series: Trending - June 4, 2019

I was a soon-to-be high school graduate, and with all the talk of past accomplishments and future plans, it was hard not to compare myself to others. All four years of high school, I was very involved. I took many challenging Advanced Placement classes, did lots of electives, and spent endless hours on extracurricular activities. But in spite of all that, I wasn’t being recognized in the same way that many of my peers were.

For example, for each achievement, a graduating senior would receive a form of regalia to wear on graduation day. I automatically felt less-than, because I was comparing myself to my friends, who had a handful of medallions and cords to wear on their robes. While I’d done over four hundred hours of community service, and had been awarded The Congressional Award, my accomplishments were mainly through an outside program and weren’t recognized by my school.

Similarly, I wanted to further my education past high school. However, unlike most of my friends, who were going to prestigious universities, I didn’t feel quite ready to go right to a four-year school. I’d decided I would go to a community college, and later, transfer to a university. Though I knew this was the right decision for me, I couldn’t help but feel insecure—like I was the odd one out.

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