For most high school kids, what to do after their four years of high school is the scariest decision they’ve been forced to make yet. In today’s world, the opportunities for high school graduates are endless: 2-year colleges or universities, 4-year colleges or universities, internships, paid jobs, study abroad programs, travel programs, post-grad athletic programs, a gap year to figure out what interests them, and more. Most commonly, AHS students choose to take the college route, wherever that may lead them. But even after the decision to apply to college has been made, there are still over 5,300 colleges and universities in the United States alone. Now do you have a better understanding of why a large portion of each senior grade walks around with the weight of their future resting on their shoulders?

But as one of those bleary-eyed, stressed-out seniors myself, I can say the fear doesn’t end there. December 14, tears of joy streamed down my flushed cheeks as the dream of studying at Tufts University for the next four years became a reality. But as soon as my mother handed me a tissue, it hit me: how often can my mother make the almost 2,170 mile journey from Aspen to Boston to do my laundry, take me out to a nice meal, lay with me when I’m sick, comfort me when I’m upset, or even just hand me a tissue? How often am I really going to be able to come back to this paradise which I call home to ski with my friends and take in the pristine Colorado landscape? This transition is more than just moving half way across the country; it is making my first real leap into adulthood.

Health psychologist Dr. Kelly McGonigal did a Ted Talk called How to Make Stress Your Friend that explained why we should embrace stress rather than treat it like our enemy. She said that we shouldn’t be afraid of stress because it isn’t the heath enemy that it has been made out to be. When our palms start to sweat, our hearts start to thump a little louder, and our voices start to shake, that’s simply our bodies energizing and preparing to meet whatever challenge we are facing with spectacular ease. When you change your mind about stress, you can change your body’s response to it.

So after flipping between the tabs displaying the Facebook page for the Tufts Class of 2020, Anthropologie bedding, and United Airlines flight prices from Denver to Boston for nearly an hour and a half, I decided to take a deep breath and make stress, anxiety, and fear my friends. With a shaky hand, I started surfing through the Tufts curriculum course descriptions and fully realized what an extraordinary education is in store for me. Suddenly, a sensational sense of joy and relief filled my head. I worked tirelessly throughout my high school career to design my future as a Tufts student and my time has finally come.

The anxiety that seems to be making the clocks run faster and that wakes me up at night in a cold sweat suddenly doesn’t seem so ominous. Living on my own, without the comfort and support of my parents, will give me the independence that my Aspen bubble has yet to give me. Living in the ‘real world’ will expand my public transportation profile from simply the cemetery lane bus to the subway, commuter rail, and the city bus. I will be able to watch the leaves change for more than two weeks before snow covers the trees.

The road ahead may be dark and unknown, but I am more than equipped to navigate it. Despite the fear that has encompassed me over the past few months, I am so confident that there are incredible things in store for me during the next four years and beyond.