From my house to Benton is between 45 minutes and an hour. My family makes this drive often, about once a month. My dad grew up in Benton, and my grandparents still live there. It’s interesting though. The drive up there, I am relaxed and content. I lean my seat back and lose myself in sleeping, listening to music, or writing. The way back from Benton is the same routine. Until we reach Mayflower. Mayflower is only about fifteen minutes from my house. As soon as our car passes the “Welcome to Mayflower” sign, I sit up, more alert. My ipod goes off and I close my lap top. I loosen my seatbelt and sit up. I’m still fifteen minutes away from home, but I know I’m really close. This realization begins to set in and soon home is all I focus on. I become restless and I realize how achy my legs are from not moving. I want nothing more than to get out of the car and run through my yard, free. As I draw nearer to my house, it is all I can think about. I begin to plan out what I will do when I get home. What will I eat? Will I go outside and play with my dog? Or will I stay inside and clean my room or watch television? The road becomes so familiar, I can trace it with closed eyes. Home. I’m almost there.
The funny thing is, however, that I could be coming from visiting my grandparents in Benton or returning from a week long vacation in Florida. But no matter what, I always begin to get restless in Mayflower. I believe this is the same with many other aspects of life.
Senioritis, as it is commonly called, affects even the most driven students. It comes towards the end of senior year, boarding Spring Break and graduation. It seems that students have spent so much time in one place, one institution, one lifestyle. And, almost like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, they begin to stir. Many lose focus of school work and grades begin to drop. The appearance of students change too. Sweat pants and t shirts replace jeans and blouses. Ponytails replace straightened or curled hair and girls’ faces lose their make up. The school hallways are alive with the energy for the future, yet dead from the lack of motivation to complete anything. Behavioral problems go up, and the number of drop outs dramatically increase. The students are at Mayflower.
For some, it has been a ten hour drive from Florida. And for others, a 45 minute drive from Benton. But either way, they know home is near. Freedom is near. What many forget is that even at Mayflower, the end of the year, there is still fifteen minutes left and there is still school left to be completed. Regaining the motivation to succeed is a very difficult aspect. You can still have a wreck in those 15 minutes. And you can still change your future in those short months. Nearing the end of my senior year, I rejoice in the sighting of Mayflower, yet keep driving to finish strong.
For some, it has been a ten hour drive from Florida. And for others, a 45 minute drive from Benton. But either way, they know home is near. Freedom is near. What many forget is that even at Mayflower, the end of the year, there is still fifteen minutes left and there is still school left to be completed. Regaining the motivation to succeed is a very difficult aspect. You can still have a wreck in those 15 minutes. And you can still change your future in those short months. Nearing the end of my senior year, I rejoice in the sighting of Mayflower, yet keep driving to finish strong.
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