Overachieving

This year I've taken on too much as per usual. I am doing my gold Duke of Edinburgh, violin diploma, five AS levels, one fast tracked A2, running a ukulele club for kids, taking my 3rd kyu aikido, lead in an orchestra, singing in a choir and volunteering at Cubs while at the same time trying to maintain my sanity.

Last year was the same story. 6A*s and 4As at GCSEs, my grade eight violin, my silver Duke of Edinburgh, the majority of the aforementioned clubs and failing to stay calm, composed and in control.

Everything inside of me is buzzing with energy at the beginning of each day and at the end I am an exhausted wreck. I spend the last lesson on Friday slumped on the desk, wallowing in a pit of misery, maths, and cheesy wotsits.

And I need those cheesy wotsits, because the Monday chamber choir means I skip lunch. And the Tuesday ukulele club. And on Thursdays I have my violin lesson, so I miss lunch then too. And on Fridays I have charities committee. 

I do homework while shovelling an apple in my face at high speed for breakfast, then maybe catch a piece of flapjack thrown my way by my mother and race out the door to catch the school bus. In fact I can't remember the last time I sat down to eat properly, I'm just rushed off my feet. Stressed, tired and doing too much.

My form tutor told me to drop the extra AS. The teacher for that extra AS told me to drop ukulele club. My ukulele club wanted me to drop chamber choir instead. And the conductor for chamber choir told me I wasn't allowed, and to give up the Duke of Edinburgh award which my tutor valued as the most important extra curricular activity. So I just try to please everyone and struggle along, doing all of it. My mother argues that it's better to do a few things and be outstanding at them than do everything badly but that's just an excuse to get me to practice the violin more. She doesn't think an hour and a half each day is enough.

I know I'm doing too much, but if I didn't, that wouldn't be me.