R | Writing | Essays | Laughing It Up

This is a personal narrative essay done for my Honours English class.

You know that they say, "All work and no play makes one a good person." That's what I thought when I started my junior year in high school. My freshman and sophmore years has been horrible. I'd spent the whole year doing nothing in the way of studying and homework, and it showed plainly in my grades for those years. Thus, I decided to make my junior year count. After all, weren't the transcripts for the junior year the first transcripts that college admission offices received? My goal for my junior year was to be attentive in class, do my homework, and study certain individual topics. I would put everything I had to give into that one school year and go from a D student to an A student.

As the months passed and I entered the second semester, I found that I was "running out of steam," so to speak. Although I was punctual in completing my schoolwork and diligent when it came to sacrificing personal time to study, I felt as if I was being stretched thin. I couldn't understand it! I was doing wonderfully in school, but even after I'd finished all my work when I got home after school, I felt anxious and shaky. I wanted to go out and have some fun with my friends, but I simply couldn't leave my house for fear that if I had too much fun, I'd lose sight of what good studying techniques I'd built up.

The answer to my problem came during spring break. I was pouring over my textbooks and school notes when my boyfriend called. He asked me if I wanted to go see a movie with him later that day. I have him my usual response of, "No, I can't, I have to study." He sighed on the other line and made a whimpering sound, "You never want to do anything anymore!" There was a long silence between us, and as it stretched out longer and longer, I felt something well up in my throat, making it tickle. I presed my lips together, knowing that what was about to happen wasn't the least bit appropriate in light of the situation, but it wasn't enough. I burst into loud, boistrous laughter. My textbook dropped from my hands, I fell back onto my bed, and rolled around giggling. It was the strangest thing! There was nothing funny that my boyfriend has said, and nothing funny about the situation, yet there I was laughing like a lunatic! The crazy laughter went on for an unbelievable 20 minutes, I'm not kidding! My boyfriend was baffled, unsure of what to say to my unusual behaviour. He stayed silent on the line for a few moments and then slowly began to laugh with me. After the laughing subsided, I agreed to see a movie with him that evening.

In those 30 minutes of laughter, I realized that studying and doing homework does determine one's grade in school and it should be prioritized accordingly. However, studying and homework doesn't let one truly live life. That being said, sometimes one just has no choice but to ditch the books and have some moments of fun to clear the head and let all the pent-up laughter out.