by Derek Huang

Created on: May 21, 2008

Time is short. Soon you will be leaving high school, a departure that will mark the end of those peculiar transition years, when the child's freedom from responsibility becomes the adult's freedom to make choices for the future. Everyone has some regrets about how the past few years were spent, but it's a little late to swerve onto an entirely new direction for most students, and for seniors especially. Instead, upperclassmen should focus on little, specific goals to reach before it's all over. In short, the sundae's been made; now, for the cherry on top...

1. Learn to cook. This is probably the most vital practical skill you can spend a week or two working on. The dreaded "Freshman Fifteen" weight gain happens all too often because college students can't make good food from scratch. Instead, they resort to eating at restaurants and buying pre-cooked meals (often loaded with sodium and preservatives). Today, one can look up simple recipes online (watch cooking shows on YouTube so that you can avoid commercials and only watch the recipes that interest you) or in books at the local library without spending a dime. A good way to force yourself to learn how to prepare some easy meals is to plan a schedule for an entire week in which you only eat dinners that you cook yourself.

2. Preserve memories. Apart from the obligatory yearbook signings, there are many simple things you can do with friends to ensure that you never forget them, no matter how far they end up. Arrange a get-together at a restaurant or at someone's house to reminisce about the past and talk about the future. Whatever you plan, it should allow for open conversation and interaction. For example, if you want to see a movie with them, its better to watch a DVD at someone's house instead of in a loud, dark theater. Before your friends leave, remind each one of them to call you! It's much easier to ignore someone's Facebook or Myspace message than an actual voice on the other end of the line.

3. Do something new. Looking at all the fuss about graduation, and finals, and farewells, the sense of ending can be too much to bear. Think about it this way: most of what you do in your last days as a high school student is like writing the concluding chapter of a book, a book that started four years ago. It shouldn't be all conclusions and no beginnings though. Picking up a new hobby or starting a new book can serve to remind you that there's still a lot to come, a lot being the rest of your life.

4. Do something

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