This life is not easy for everyone. Not everyone is lucky enough to be handed the world and able to run around worry-free. Some people from before they even graduate high school have to learn to be an adult and take care of themselves and their families in order to survive.

This does not just happen to just one particular group of people or certain areas. These “kids” that have to grow up faster than everyone are all around you, whether you have ever even taken the time to realize it or not.

You never know what someone’s going through on the surface. The person that smiles the most in your class may barely sleep at night because they have to work for 5 hours after school every day before even beginning their homework, just trying to do whatever they can to still perform well. Families going through difficult times, deaths in the family, illness -- there are hundreds of reasons people are struggling.

But society doesn’t give kids like this a free pass. They are still expected to perform just to the caliber of the students who aren’t up against the same odds if they even want to be able to compete in society for college, for internships or jobs.

It’s exhausting. It’s flat out exhausting. Take it from me, a 20-year-old who sleeps on average 4 to 5 hours a night, having to work full time to be able to make ends meet while going to school full time and still trying to be the holistic student that I want and need to be in order to excel.

It’s hard. But despite how hard it may seem, if you are faced in this position. Push through it. It can be done.

And you should try to push yourself to do what seems to be the impossible, because right now is only one huge hurdle in the marathon of life ahead, and things will get better. Learning to do the impossible this year has challenged me in unimaginable ways, that I wouldn’t trade.

When someone says they think you won’t be able to do something you desire more than anything because it seems to “hard” – do it anyway.

Because if you are passionate enough and desire something badly enough, you can make it work. Having heart and drive can make what seems to be impossible, possible.

Take it from me first hand. Due to circumstances in my life, I was going to have to work full time this year in order to make ends meet. I was told by peers that I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t work full-time, I couldn’t be successful in school, I couldn’t be actively present in organizations and wouldn’t have any time to be social.

The night I learned of this, I was heartbroken, devasted and felt my world falling apart. I was trapped and there was going to be no way for things to look up for me in this situation. But the next morning, I woke up and said no. I said no to giving up on my dreams and desires just because of an obstacle is thrown at me in my life.

I chose that day to find a way to make what seemed impossible, possible.

Nothing worthwhile comes easy. But the values I accumulated from this challenge has forever made a lasting positive impact in my life and on how I will approach any challenge I may face for the rest of my life.

In society today it is too easy to overlook the magnitude of everyday struggles and the faced by the people around us. Encourage and push the people in your life to be courageous and do the impossible.

Be fearless. Be strong. Do the impossible. And don’t let any situation or any obstacle hold you back from the person you are destined to be.