APees: A Little Motivation

This is a copy of what I just e-mailed all of my APees, for those who do not read e-mail.

Dear APees, October is almost upon us, and some of you are still lingering in the chambers of the sea, convinced that the College Fairy is going to bestow a gift upon your little heads called Acceptance without any effort on your part. Most of you are on track, but I am starting to sense an overwhelming sense of existential woe halting some of you from moving forward. Inertia is the natural state, isn't it? Thus far this year, I have read about fifty college essays and written almost two dozen letters of recommendation. (Yes, I'm still finishing the ones given to me last week--they should be done by the end of business tomorrow.) Some of you are just having trouble getting started, so here is my suggestion: After school on Thursday, and during both lunch shifts on Thursday, I'd like to have an Open Session to just work on college stuff with any interested parties. I don't have the answers to every problem, nor am I am expert on collegiate matters, but I have taught seniors for a long, long time and I know a few tricks. More to the point, I just wanted to say this: I haven't had a group of seniors this talented, this kind, and this motivated in a while, and I am confident that ALL of you will find happiness in the post-secondary world. You just have to reach out and grab it. You CAN do this. It's like another part-time job, and although the language is different and the requirements frequently resemble Faulkner novels, college applications are just another rite of passage into the so-called Real World. So get there. You are smart, dedicated, hard-working kids with strong academic resumes and a variety of experiences in your respective backgrounds. The only thing that can stop you is the devil of procrastination, so please, please, please take a few minutes tonight and work on this process. (To those who are already well underway--take your leftover energy and send it to Scholarship Land!) Much love to all of you, Ms. Hilley SUMMARY OF E-MAIL FOR SHORT ATTENTION SPANS, HAIKU FORM: College is so good. Session to help you Thursday. Come if you want to.