All around campus, no matter where one one turns, there is a person taking a hard class, or spending a large portion of their time dedicated to sports, extracurriculars, jobs, volunteering or more.

 For many, school and life in general can be very stressful to keep up with. That stress can be very scary and difficult to manage for students.

 For Zak Rubio(12), the stress can be very overwhelming at times. With five AP classes as well as Spanish 4, his plate is very full of school. Add NHS, Interact Club, and the STEAM Team, all clubs which he is an officer of, and Cross Country and Track, Zak’s plate isn’t just full, it is mountain high.

 Not only is Zak filled with school work and extracurricular activities, but there is a lot of pressure put on him by his parents to do well. With two brothers in college, one at Willamette University and the other at U.C. San Diego, the pressure to get into a good college is on.

 “In a way it’s [the stress] been weighing me down but it’s also motivation and make me more driven” Rubio reveals.

 However Autumn Mckim(11) take a different point of view on her stress. Mckim is very busy with AP Environmental, Biotechnology, Sociology, and her core classes as well as being on the Rising Stars Council, running the instagram and twitter for Journalism and the Government Inspector, Interact Club, Best Buds, and Cinema Club outside of school.

 While she is very busy and is always having more work thrown at her, Mckim is very open to the stress and hard work, saying that it’s fun to do something for someone. If somebody asks for help, her immediate response is, “Yes I’ll do it! I’m your guy”

 School isn’t the only cause for stress though. Outside factors such as family and friends can cause stress as well.

 For Mckim, the struggle of possibly having to take in seven children from her mom’s side due to familial situations is just one of those factors. Add in when “there is drama and people are deciding to be hectic” within her friend group, and you have a whole new set of stressors.

 Rubio says stress comes alone when thinking of how he’s going to pay for college. With two brothers already in college, he can only imagine the loans his parents might have to take out, making him worried for his family.

 With all of these stressors, one does need to find a way to manage it, keep it at bay. McKim says she likes to take baths, and if time permits, add nice music, bubbles, and just relax.

 “If I assess that it’s an unhealthy situation, I take a step back, evaluate what I need to do, destroy it and destress” Mckim says.

 Rubio on the other hand runs (after he stress eats of course), hangs out with friends, and prays.

 “All that stress I put in my life, I know will reward me in the future” Rubio says.

 With stress on their shoulders and optimism in their minds and their hearts, McKim and Rubio are glad that the quarter is coming to a close, but are ready for what is yet to come.

“Military After High School”

Jazemin Jefferies-Seward

 For many students, a four-year college or a Junior College takes up a portion of their lives after high school. There is a whole group of students who are planning to go into the military after they finish school instead of straight into a four-year college.

 Steph Redding (10) is one of those students who have made that decision. Redding said that freshman year is when she began to really get intrigued by the JROTC program.

 “Freshman year, going into the JROTC program I thought it would be a lot of fun, but as I spent more and more time in the program I started to want to actually enlist in the future.”

 Redding later explained that what she wants to get out of serving is the idea of knowing that she had an impact on our country and to also gain some pride from it.

 Of course there are some people in her life that have an affect on her decision like some of her family members, who were previously in the military, and also the reactions coming from her friends and family.

 “My grandfathers were both in the military and all of my uncles as well, the reactions I had gotten from them were positive but most of the reactions I had gotten from my mom and her side of the family were pretty negative but when I told my dad along with his side of the family the reactions were mainly positive.”