Carnival Edition 3: Tests

Letter to the World by Amber

 

Whether it was prompted by a chalkboard full of quotations to memorize or a chunky piece of Hemingway to digest, you have all asked, “Miss Flindt, why do we have to learn this?”
“It’ll be on the test,” I respond automatically.
You believe me. You trust that there will indeed be a test that measures all the bites of knowledge I have forced down your throats. With full bellies, you await that one opportunity to regurgitate everything into perfect ABCD bubbles, carefully darkened in by your number two pencils. 

Read the rest here.

 
 

Testing Testing 1 2 3 by Ashley

 

I rock at tests.

I do.

All I’m saying is; tests don’t scare me. At the risk of being obnoxious and having you guys toss glares in my direction (especially those of you currently studying for finals), I have to tell you – I am so competitive that I see tests as another way to excel. 

Read the rest here. 

 

 

Excommunicated by Ben

 

"I'm up for a scholarship that'll pay for me study abroad for four months."

It was a lie. A big lie. Maybe one of the biggest I've ever told. I used to lie a lot - a childish habit commonly associated with daydreamers.

When you move around as a kid, you have the opportunity to rewrite your own history time and time again. The temptation was more than I could handle. My lies were always modest, based-on-a-true-story type lies. Nothing as extreme as this one. 

Read more here.

 

 

 

Love Is Not A Game by Chickbug

When your heart breaks, you lose apart of yourself. Life continues and you stand in the middle of the swirl, trying to make sense of it. why me? How did this happen? What do i do? How do i go on?

Life is forever changed. Your reality is altered. And everyone around you wants to give you structure. They give you rules. "Don't do this." "Focus on that." "This is unhealthy." "That will help."

 

Read the rest here.

 

 

Jobless and Urine-less by Jalynn 

I walked into a room that looked to be just a little bigger than a prison cell. I glanced around acknowledging my surroundings. A small desk occupied the left corner with a man seated at it. To the right was a single couch, chair, and tiny television set. He hadn’t seen me, or at least pretended not to.

“Hi I’m [ Jaylynn ] I’m here to take a drug test” I said half telling but half asking at the same time. 

Read more here.

 

 

 

Failing by Sequins and Glitter

 

I was in a long-distance relationship for almost a year in college. The boy I'd come to love when I lived abroad in Germany lived across the country from me, and when our program ended in the Summer we decided that we were stronger than 2500 miles.

 

Read more here. 

 

 

I Don't Like Tests by Tara

 

I, in fact, hate taking tests. They are stressful and not always fair, some people just learn differently. In grade school tests were hard and confusing, they were all “What’s your phone number? Where does your mom work? How do you spell your name?” Sure those questions are easy enough, when your last name is Smith and your mom works at McDonalds. You try being a five year old has a last name like Panatsushynnmani or having a mom who works at Mitsubishi Motor Manufacturing of America.

 

Read the rest here.

 

 

What Can I Get by Lauren

 

Right after I graduated college and before I found full-time work, there was a six-month period where I did everything from delivering packages to running a kids' after school program.  Somewhere in there I also responded to an ad for teaching SAT prep; my reasoning was that hey, I did pretty well on those, and plus, don't they charge parents obscene amounts of money for the courses?  The teachers must be making bank.

 

Read the rest here.

 

 

Patience or Lack Thereof by Elle

 

I have a slight problem.

It's called a lack of patience.

Some people were born with the ability to solve problems calmly and efficiently. Some people can, when faced with something that's gone wrong, maintain the ability to keep trying until it's all back to normal. Basically, some people are able to fix things without flying into a rage, peppered with every cuss-word in existence.

Read the rest here.

   

 

Destined to Succeed by Polynesian Princess

 

My breathing becomes irregular and my heart beats rapidly in my chest. I blow out a breath of air and try to concentrate. I must be concentrating too hard because everything in my mind goes blank. I start to break out into a cold sweat, it’s harder to breathe and I’m afraid my heart is going to pound out of my chest. Too many people staring at me, watching me, expecting excellence from me. Instead I completely fail with only 3 more steps to go.

 

Read the rest here.