The idea going into senior year is that it will be a time of hanging out with friends, having an easy schedule and — with nearly being an adult — having much more freedom that is automatically given to you. However, my senior year has proven to be quite the opposite. From not playing football for my last season due to a back injury to being forced to complete a semester of AP Statistics in order to graduate, I have learned to face numerous obstacles.

Each of us goes through our own struggles in life and, at the time, it can prove very difficult to find any sense of hope. Moments like these are when it is most important to remain concentrated on the end goal.

As a shooting guard in basketball, the last few games have proven particularly frustrating after I have consecutively missed numerous shots. Despite my failed attempts, my coaches constantly remind me to keep shooting. You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take, so I must continue to practice shooting and trust that, when the opportunity arises to make those clutch shots for the team, my persistance will pay off.

However, I know that the majority of FC students are not basketball players. For some, the end goal may be graduation, earning a certain GPA or simply surviving until a fun-filled summer. Yet, whatever it may be will require a continued, diligent work ethic.

As we work to achieve these desires, it is vital that we keep our eyes open along the way. Sometimes we can rush through all the hard work or try to take shortcuts to gain the desired result. But, often times there are things to be learned through the experience.

The same is true with life. If we do everything just to simply get it done, what will we have to show for it at the end? If we work to achieve our intentions and are able to absorb more than one sole focus, we will succeed.

With our basketball team we set a few major goals before the season began. Yet, if we don’t continue to show up to practice daily and focus on one game at a time then, despite what we have already achieved, we will not have put in the amount of work to succeed fully.

Although second semester is typically a prime time to develop apathy no matter what the age, let us continue to persevere and set our eyes on what we desire to accomplish.

2 Timothy 4:7 says: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

Come May, I hope we can all look at this verse and know that we finished the year strong.

For more letters, read the Dec. 15 submission, LETTER: Consider character.