If you were to sneak a peek at a senior’s agenda, what would you find? Most likely, you would see columns of pending homework, weeks of grueling sports practice, a part-time job schedule and perhaps some still nebulous plans for fun with friends.

With so many demands on their time, what’s a poor senior to do?

Surviving life in high school often boils down to making priorities and then sticking to them. Students must accept that they cannot do everything, and then choose accordingly.

Senior year is truly a unique experience; new opportunities and privileges abound. But who wants to look back at their high school years and remember only anxious study sessions in the library?

No one should be forced to miss out on lifelong memories because of their curricular obligations.

And yet, that is what they are: obligations. Students have a responsibility to complete the work required in the classes they elected to take. Sports and extracurricular activities also demand commitment and effort.

Learning to balance the demands of their teachers, coaches and friends is a requirement for success. And further, this balance must be a healthy one. There are 24 hours in a day, and only a certain number of activities can be allotted to fill that time.

An overloaded schedule is the bane of high school existence.

Schedule juggling is a necessary skill for high school students. It can be either the key to a successful and enjoyable experience, or the stone that breaks to pieces the one on whom it falls (Matthew 21:44). Working hard at everything and getting drowned by nothing is the paradoxical ideal of high school life.