If you, like so many others, are entering your second semester of senior year without any idea of what the next year of your life will hold, know that it is okay. It feels excruciating every time you see another one of your friends post a picture of their newest acceptance letter, award letter, or decision to sign. Meanwhile, you are still playing the waiting game. If you are lucky, your acceptances rolled in last month or this month, but you may not know about your acceptances until late March or early April. Then, assuming you've been accepted, you still have to wait for financial aid information. The not knowing is stifling. You feel like you're being left behind while all of your friends are making their plans to move on.

It's scary.

It also gets better. If the schools you have pinned your hopes on choose not to accept you, it stings. I can't promise that the sting goes away quickly or completely, but I can assure you that those rejections are not indicators of your worth. A year ago, I was in your shoes. I thought I needed the Ivy League acceptances. I was wrong. College is a time of learning, not just math and science but personal growth. You will get to become better regardless of whether that is at Harvard or a community college. The two months from now until you receive those decisions will pass even if you spend every second worrying. So from high school senior me to you, take the time to enjoy your last few months of high school. Life has a way of working out.