by Guadalupe “Pita” Saldivar
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, 2001
You got that right, Weasley.
Couldn’t have said it better myself.
There is no one more qualified than me to attest to the necessity of
choosing priorities. This was a lesson I learned the hard way and here are my
credentials. In high school, especially during my senior year, I let far too
many things slip through my fingers because I had not put them on the top of my
to-do list.
Being preoccupied is a crime that I
cannot plea innocent of. I am guilty of taking on more than I could chew. In my
high school career I took on a total of eight AP classes and participated in
just as many extracurricular activities. There were rarely days when I
was able to leave right after school. Instead I bounced from review sessions to
club meetings and then to working on the yearbook. This was a difficult lesson
for me to learn but in an attempt to be a time lord wizard, I took on more
mischief than I could manage. We don’t all have the luxury of a time-turner
allowing us to be in two places at once like Hermione, so I had to learn how to
prioritize all these different responsibilities and where to best dedicate my
time.
There were times when, like Hermione, I
prioritized my work over my basic necessities such as sleep or pumpkin juice
breaks. I’m sure many can relate when I say that it’s difficult to fight off a
sleeping curse when you come home at nine o’clock and
still have an
endless list of assignments to worry about. I had to choose between
prioritizing sleep or homework. I could not do my homework and allow myself to
fall asleep, or the alternative, which was to plow through my work in a state
of delirium and show up to school the next day feeling like a vat of living
death. This vicious cycle continued daily.
Was it worth it? Of course, but looking back, I can
see where I could have made better choices.
Getting involved in your school, community, and
other organizations helps develop interests outside of the everyday academic
requirements. It is important to build connections with others that share
similar interests and it is also helpful in broadening your own. I truly love
all that I’ve done. All these activities and volunteering opportunities I have
been involved in have been enriching experiences. I see my exhaustion is proof
that I am living life to the fullest and taking advantage of every opportunity
I have. These opportunities can help you develop as a leader and strengthen
your skill sets. I am proud of my involvement in my activities of interest and
the dedication to my work, they are an important part of what makes me, me.
As a high school senior, I
had to deal with the ramifications of not prioritizing certain things to ensure
a bright future. It was tough enough trying to complete current assignments and
surviving eminent deadlines in high school, that anything college related often
got locked away into the Room of Requirement. Sometimes deadlines for
applications and scholarships got placed on the back burner and I dealt with
them last minute, if ever at all. This posed a serious problem because there is
no flexibility when it comes to college deadlines: there are no extensions or
second chances. I recall many conversations that began with, “Did you do
this? Have you applied for this? Did you finish that?” I’d wince and reply, “No I didn’t. I wanted to,
but just didn’t have time.” It’s times like these when Neville’s remberall could have really come in
handy.
Instead of incorporating college deadlines into my high school to-do
list, I often saw these college deadlines as a future problem which I did not want
to face at the moment because I was preoccupied with present due dates. In
actuality, college due dates were one of the most important things to do and should
have taken priority over current issues because they would be the ones that would
determine my future, and I sometimes let them fly by on a broomstick. Missing
these deadlines can hold serious consequences. If you miss an application
deadline, there is no way you are going to that college, or if you miss the
FAFSA deadline you are not going to get financial aid. I learned some hard
lessons in realizing the importance of getting things done right away and not leaving
things till the last minute.
Enemies of the clock beware; there is a
fine line between procrastinating and prioritizing other responsibilities. It
is sometimes easier in the moment to put things off and claim that they are not
currently important. Doing this will come back to haunt you like Moaning
Myrtle. The only way to avoid the constant nagging of your conscience is to
live life with the mentality that there is no time like the present, carpe
diem, no day but today. The only way I can survive my Hungarian Horntail of
responsibilities is to take things one day at a time and never put off for
tomorrow what can be done today. And the only way to do that is with a
realistic to-do list of priorities.
Never let anything prevent you from achieving your
goals. In the end, there is no single magical solution. Learning to prioritize
is not just about making to-do lists; it’s about knowing what to move to the
top of that list and knowing what to move down, what to add and what to obliviate. So write your own prophecy,
seek greatness, and catch that golden snitch.
Due to her wit, creativity, and passion for learning
Guadalupe “Pita” Saldivar is an honorary member of Ravenclaw House. All her
hard work paid off as she graduated from CVHS this past June ranked third in
her class. Pita is currently studying as an Undeclared-Humanities Major at UCLA
and checks her mailbox regularly for her Hogwarts letter to arrive. Likewise, she
encourages all of you to reach for the stars and never give up on your dreams.