Well guys, the fourth week of school is coming to a close and, despite the desperate scramble of college apps and the final push to make my GPA soar, I already find myself slacking.

Senior year was supposed to be easy. It was supposed to be a year of blow-off classes and the never-ending string of blissful half-days that is double senior release. Unfortunately, reality has denied my high school movie dreams and instead smacked me in the face with five AP classes, a double block as editor-in-chief of this lovely publication, and a part-time job. Stressed is an understatement.

This is why it is so important for society to take a hard look at the modern teenager and give them credit for all that they manage. A phrase I hear more often than I would like is, “Things were so much harder when I was your age.” My mom, in particular, often tells me stories of how she aced advanced classes, ran track, played basketball and still made it home to have a wholesome family dinner every night when she was a teen. She also went to a tiny local school and had nowhere near the course load many gifted and talented students juggle today.

Instructors of AP courses seem to have the same mindset, believing that their course is the only thing on students’ plates. However, when we are receiving “just an hour of homework each night” (plus three quizzes and a test and maybe an essay every week) for each higher-level class, the work adds up. Ultimately, comparing different generations in terms of education workload isn’t beneficial because so many things have changed; technology is being incorporated into schools on an unprecedented scale, courses have been revised and developed and there is arguably more pressure than ever to attend college, and therefore to get the grades and extracurriculars needed to do so.

I’ve never really understood the saying, “Less is more,” because it seems to me that people always want more, and, even then, more is not enough. More challenging classes, more extracurriculars, more good grades. I suppose there are some things that become less: less free time, less “Let’s hang out this weekend” and way less sleep. Of course, this isn’t to say that hormonal, emotional, underdeveloped-brain teenagers aren’t capable of handling all of this. Except, well, we aren’t. Parents tend to brush off teenagers’ need for relaxation as insignificant or over dramatic, but this nonchalance glazes over what is truly a serious issue.

At 17 years old, I should be getting a solid 8-10 hours of sleep a night. However, I consider my day a success when I can crawl bleary-eyed into bed before the clock hits 1 AM, and passing out before midnight is an idea on par with growing wings. If I think back hard enough, I can faintly remember the days when going to bed was a chore, when I would beg for five more minutes or complain about having nap time. Today, the idea of a designated time of the day just to sleep gets me far more excited than it probably should.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love a lot of aspects of what I get to do at this age. Working on the newspaper staff is an absolute joy, and makes me realize everyday that I have a passion for journalism. Working at DSW, getting 30 percent off shoes and making my own money is incredibly satisfying. On some level, I enjoy my busy schedule, and being able to sit in my car after a long work shift or an endless school day and just think, “Wow, I feel like a mini adult with my stressful days and aching back.” But then come those days where I can’t imagine doing anything other than curling up in a tiny ball and downing bags of potato chips as I watch Netflix until my eyes burn.

So I’m not asking for an 11 AM school start time or a four-day week (although both would be incredible) but simple recognition and understanding for what many students do would be a start. Even though we are the generation that has spent hours shooting little cartoon birds at pig towers and once ate spoonfuls of straight cinnamon as part of an online trend, we are also a generation of open-minded, adventurous, hard-working youth who are ready to make our mark on the world. Give us some credit.

Featured image from https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-laptop-female-hand-note-pen-phone-desk-6471/