Why won’t school just end already? I’m sorry, teachers and administrators; we’re all thinking it. We are tired of studying for AP tests,  throwing projects together, and scribbling essays. We are tired of math problems and science labs. I know I am not alone when I say the last day of school cannot come soon enough. That’s why this article is only a paragraph; I’m tired. Ok, it can’t be just one paragraph, not when there are so many deadlines and activities over which to stress.

With the end of school in sight, only a month away for non-seniors and even less for them, AP testing should be the last thing on our minds. Unfortunately, the next two weeks will be a sad picture of droopy-eyed test-takers. The heavens are feeling it, too, with a healthy coating of fog and a sunless sky. However, that does not mean studying should end. The school system may no longer pay for our AP tests but they have purchased a subscription to Learnerator, a resource of practice questions. So don’t throw in the towel just yet. After the next two weeks of testing, everyone can breathe a sigh of relief… that is, until end-of-class-projects rear their ugly head. It’s just two more weeks, two more weeks. Can you tell I’m trying to console myself?

But it’s not only AP tests that are there to haunt otherwise giddy, teenage lives. In-class tests and essays and projects are still here. Who needs free time or even study time? I just love projects while I’m trying to focus on testing on whole year’s worth of material. Senior Casey Bacon agrees, saying, “school is shattering my soul into thousands of tiny pieces.”But, there’s a silver lining. It will all end soon. I admit, not the shiniest of silver linings, but this nugget of hope is all we have to survive. This is a game of endurance and we will all make it; we have to. Don’t worry. The sarcasm will save you. That’s why I’m writing this: my personal therapy session.

We haven’t forgotten about you teachers; we all know the final month of school is weighing on you as well. You have projects to grade and kids to keep interested after your AP curriculum ends. Students know why you are assigning so much work around AP testing; you need to wrap up class requirements and maintain order in the classroom. But, could you at least wait until after AP testing to bombard us? Please? Oh well, it wouldn’t be school if everyone wasn’t neck deep in work and expectations.

AP testing and all the wonderful projects sprinkled in between may be overwhelming your already-overwhelming schedule, but students and teachers, we are in the home stretch. We have only one month to survive each other’s company. So sacrifice much-needed nights of sleep and crank out all the work you can, Leonardtown. You only have to do it for one month more.