According to the Bible, one day Jesus will return and judge the living and the dead and every deed, hidden or known. However, for students, judgment day happens at the end of every term.

Every one to two months, students spiral, trying to catch deadlines and ultimately beating themselves up. This is a repeated cycle of endless studying, unlimited coffee, and a never-ending to-do list. There is no one more frantic than a college student in their exam week, deprived of sleep. Luckily for their nerves, it does not end there. The following days are scarier when scores are released, and exam questions are discussed.

It is during these times that the pressure is overbearing, and a life crisis ensues. Quite frankly, the very little free time after is more of a doom’s day than a rest day. The rescheduled breakdowns could no longer be put off. It is time to sit down and process emotions, and for a college student, there is nothing scarier than your own thoughts.

Questions like,

Where am I headed?

Is this the right path for me?

Why do I feel like I have learned nothing but to repress my emotions?

Will I ever be satisfied with the work I produce?

Will I ever be enough?

The next thing you know, after what feels like just less than an hour of sleep, a blink of an eye and an alarm come off—the next term is already starting.

This is the system that has raised one generation after another, only getting harsher every year. Still, we dare ask why countless students choose to take their own lives. Calls for academic ease are labeled as petty complaints, and mental health breaks supposedly fuel laziness in students.

If Rizal was indeed right in saying that the future of the nation lies within the hands of the youth, why do we not care for them? Their insights are not considered, and their advocacies are deemed petty and absurd. Would there even be a future to look forward to if we continued to belittle the voices and struggles of our students—our future professionals?

What has the mass killing of students and silencing of youth-led progressive organizations during the martial law era done if not wipe out a generation of promising leaders ultimately giving us nothing but the same political dynasties as choices for the succeeding elections?

With the son of dictator Marcos as president and Arroyo’s puppet for a vice president, the lives and potential of the youth are in danger now more than ever.

The cycle must end here, or we lose yet another generation of leaders.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author in this piece do not necessarily reflect those of his/her school or Politico.ph. 

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