The result of sheer hard work. Shaped over time, these notebooks were my life last year. They were with me at 11p.m. on a Sunday and 7a.m. the following Monday. I couldn’t get away from them. As soon as I turned one in, I would get another lab handout from the teacher. It seemed that at every point during the year we were working on a lab report.

The first lab. I went in with sheer hubris, thinking I had a fool-proof procedure and would breeze through every step—I couldn’t have been further from the truth. I ended up spending all 60 minutes completely muddled. I didn’t even know where to start. My data tables were completely wrong, and I had missed an entire section of the procedure. I was forced to give up my next two days of lunch to catch up. But, I didn’t give up. I kept giving each lab my best effort. After the next couple labs, I knew what I was doing.

The worst thing about these notebooks: they were written completely in pen. My teacher required us to handwrite each lab in ink, and this caused a lot of frustration. There was no erasing, if I misspelled a word, I had to draw a line through it, and then my teacher would see each and every mistake that I made. It seemed that perfection was sought after, but I was nowhere near that.

The exam. My first ever AP test, however, it seemed that everyone else had taken an AP exam before. I felt like Atlas walking into that testing room, with the weight of the world on my shoulders. Despite the exam feeling like eternity, it felt easy. It all made sense. My teacher had been so hard on us this year to prepare us, and I failed to see that through the endless hours I put into this course.

AP Chemistry was the hardest class I had ever taken; however, I did very well because I put in the effort required to succeed. I got a 5 on the exam, and this was one of the most significant accomplishments of my academic career. I can vividly remember the relief when I sealed the packet on my exam, leaving the room feeling like a new person. I knew that my work paid off and these notebooks are a reminder of my success.