Advice Given for a New Beginning
by: Britainie Lam

        Going to college is a big step in life and a new beginning. You will figure out that things will not be as easy as you think. Your mother and your cousin Brendy both have advice about college for you. Use the advice that has been given to you wisely. Your family, fear of your inability to do well school, the loss of friends and college are the things you should think about the most.

        You should never let anyone stop you from doing what you want to do. In the book, “ The Fire Next Time ”, James Baldwin says to his nephew, “Wherever you have turned, James, in your short time on earth, you have been told where you could go and what you could do and how you could do it and where you could live and whom you can marry” (Baldwin 7-8). Baldwin was saying that because James was black, he had limits imposed on him by white people. I think that this is true for you too, Britainie; Society limits you because you are Chinese and expects you to be smart in every subject especially math. Your family limits you from hanging out with people who are not from your culture. I know that your mom limits you because she does not want you to be teased by others and she wants you to fit in. Your learning disability has the potential to limit you if you do not work hard and study ahead of time.

        Your cousin Brendy told you not to slack off the first year of college because you will get really behind. She told you this because she slacked off herself when she was in college. When your cousin Brendy slacked off on her schoolwork, her grades went down. She could not focus on school because of her new boyfriend and parties. She was not able to get into graduate school with her poor GPA. Brendy also said to stay on top of your work, but try to have fun. Take this advice and use it when you get to college. You look up to your cousin because she was always the one who has been there for you and helped you through high school. Taking her advice will also help you through college.

        I know you are concerned about what college you will get into. Do not worry because you will be accepted to UC Santa Cruz, which is your first choice. You will be happy but also concerned about your ability to handle college. Listen to your counselor's advice to always do what is important to you first and do the fun things last. You know that partying can ruin your college career because it takes away your study time. It will be a lot more difficult than high school but your teachers have taught you everything they could. I know you are worried about the tests and the workload. All you need to do is study hard and make flashcards because you have short-term memory disability; You will most definitely need to make flashcards. You need to make flashcards so that you could look back at them when you forget the information. When you do not make flashcards, you will forget all the material even after glancing at it several times. I know that because of your learning disability, making flashcards means more work for you than other student needs, but in the end your hard work will pay off.

        I know that have learned that your disability is common and is considered a major problem. This disability has made you doubt yourself and feel inferior around others. Your disability affects your studies because it takes you longer to process certain ideas. These are the three major problems in your disability. In C. Maehler & K. Schuchardt he writes, “The functions of the central executive identified by baddeley(1996) include 1) coordinating the slave systems; 2) focusing and switching attention; and 3) retrieving representations from long term memory” ( Working memory functioning in children with learning disability). C. Maehler & K. Schuchardt states that these three problems identify the disability. You know that this learning disability involves these problems because you have already experienced them.

        Your friends have assisted you through high school and have been there to give you advice. Your best friend Christina will attend Harvard and you will go to UC Santa Cruz. You both go to different schools, but she was always there to give you advice, and when you are having difficulties with schoolwork, she is willing to help you. She is your friend because she gives you support and encouragement throughout school and outside of school. You can talk to her about anything and make a fool out of yourself and not be judged. She also said that you will get through your first year of college together. Her advice was to study hard and you will do just fine. But eventually you will have to make your own decisions. I know that when you are here in Santa Cruz, you often feel lonely and hopeless without Christina. However, I know that you want the best for her, and that is to go to Harvard. You should know that even though she is on other side of the country, she is always there for you.

        With all this advice, you should be able to succeed in college and be able to get through what you need to get through. Remember that your family and friends are giving you advice but it is you who has to choose whether to follow that advice. Always believe in yourself and never think negative thoughts because that could ruin your ability to learn. Study hard and you will end up where you want to be. From this point, everything is up to you. College can take you anywhere if you do the work that you need to do. Your life begins here.