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Clara Kao的故事

[編者按]靑春期與更年期都是人們愛談的話題,中國有很多電視連續劇來演繹這樣的生活,最近 本報記者收到讀者的電話,述説有一位單親母親,她的兒子在克里夫蘭一所私立男子學校讀書,由於壓力大心情不好導致憂鬱症,他吿訴學校老師，他想自殺他也想殺人,他本人曾用刀砍過自己的手腕,也曾經有過吸毒行爲。不過這位學生成績優秀爲人忠實,發生這些事情以後,學校做了嚴肅處理,現在這位學生已經在醫院六個多月了。
     一個單親母親已經十分不容易,加上現在面臨兒子大學不能上,住在醫院,時間金錢的付出,眞的讓這位母親有點崩潰。讀者朋友們,我們到美國來創業不容易,尤其是子女的敎育,由於我們的文化差異,我們生不由己,但我們千萬不要找藉口,一説就是歧視。我回答我的讀者,這個萬物世界哪里沒有歧視,美國很好了,奧巴馬都當上總統了。就説上海,雖然在這里的外地民工幫助將上海建設成這么美麗的大都市，可看看當地人對外地民工的眼神,想想這里就沒有歧視嗎？
     親愛的讀者,這里我們爲您們開一個講話的窗口,您的生活您的家庭包括您自己,如果是靑春期或更年期,或者自己是更年期家中又有靑春期的孩子,您是如何把握和健康度過靑春期或更年期的,請您和我們一起分享您的經歷。感謝!
     這次請您閲讀今年高中畢業的Clara Kao的故事,和您一起分享她的高中生活。　　

　　Looking back at my high school career, I would give this advice to my tiny freshman self: find what you love and devote your time to that, rather than dabbling around in every possible volunteer group, sport, or club. I am an overachiever, this is true, but I learned to enjoy whatever I dedicate myself to.
　　　With society’s impossible pressures on high school students to excel in academics, sports, and community service, I struggled sometimes to keep up with what myself, my parents, and my community expected of me.
　　　In the Kao household, academics were always a priority. School was pretty straightforward; as long as I put in the time, I could expect the grades I wanted. Of course, taking the full AP load often led to late nights (or even early mornings, one might say), accounting for my fairly unhealthy addiction to coffee the past couple of years. It’s true I missed out on my fair share of birthday parties and movie nights with friends, but I took pleasure in my perfectionism and accomplishments. Ultimately, my focus on academics not only awarded me a high GPA, but also taught me determination and perseverance.
　　　At the same time, I always set aside time to relax with friends. I was fortunate enough to have a solid friend group of focused yet sociable students. While we could always count on each other for schoolwork help, we also made time for ourselves to relieve the stresses of school and college applications. Whether that meant an insightful in-car discussion or a Friday movie night, I always knew my friends were there for me. It was very helpful to have friends who had similar pressures academically, because we all understood each other. These sorts of solid friendships kept me happy and sane when life got stressful.
　　　Of course, I also had a busy schedule filled with extracurriculars. For me, I spent my time not so much “buffing up my resume”, but instead, doing activities I loved surrounded by supportive friends; I spent every Saturday in orchestra rehearsals for 8 hours, hundreds of hours playing tennis, and 5 years actively involved in Latin Club. However, the way I see it, all this time and effort spent on these activities did not feel like a burden or chore, rather, it was fun and exciting, as my extracurriculars allowed me to explore my passions. I was lucky enough to have discovered and delved into my own personal interests early on in my life. And from this, I’ve come to realize that work and play sometimes come hand in hand. ?In fact, that is the best combination.
　　　Just recently, I finished my senior project, in which I played cello in a string quartet that visited the Shaker Heights elementary schools to teach and inspire the young students. This music education outreach program that my friends and I initiated consisted of 6 hours of practice a day, 10 school program, a final concert, as well as the occasional midnight rehearsal. Yes, it was a lot of work to complete in only four weeks, but I was doing something I was passionate about, so it didn’t really matter. Wrapping up our final concert last week, we played Viva La Vida, a change from the typical classical music played by most string quartets. We donned sunglasses as we rocked out to the Coldplay tune; while we showcased just how much we accomplished, we still had fun. That was the epitome of my high school life.
　　　And with that, I take a final glance back at my high school years; it was an uphill climb, but now as I sit upon the plateau of graduation, I can fondly look over at all I have achieved getting here.