Lynzie Vang uses school to escape pressures

The routine of her life is a cycle that never ends. The busy schedule of sophomore Lynzie Vang is filled to the brink with things to do. She is a student maintaining a strong grade-point average, playing  basketball and badminton, and serving as the  president of the Hmong Club. Not only does this busy schedule keep her active but it keeps her away from one one thing: home.                                                                          

Her bubbly personality and pleasant attitude is what you see at first glance, but she, like many other students, deals with the hardships of her life at home. Vang said, “I’m never home.” Although her ideal place to be is school, she insists that family is very important to her.

“My parents didn’t grow up with the best education,” she said. “I want to help my family out.” Vang’s independent attitude allows her to accomplish everything she wants but it also involves a lot of stress.                                                                                     

After a long day in school, she heads to the Homework Center to try and get as much work done as possible. She then treks her way to practice which lasts for about four  hours. “If I don’t play sports I feel like I have too much free time and I’ll keep away from homework,” Vang said. Then she goes to the place she avoids the most. When she does get home, she usually starts her homework at 9:00 p.m.                                                                           

“I take a break, then I wake myself up again at 3:00 a.m.” One altercation that she remembers is when her mother questioned why she was still up doing work. “It was a big argument,” she said. “She got mad because I stayed up and did my homework.”

Screaming, Vang told her mother that, “‘You don’t understand. I have so many subjects that I can’t focus on one!’” Eventually her mother came to the conclusion that Vang can do it on her own. “Even though she can’t do much because she’s busy, she still is supportive,” Vang  said.   

While Vang wants to be a role model for her little brothers, her older brother is her inspiration. “I’m glad he is my older brother because he makes mistakes that I see. He is a big part of my life,” she said. While she struggled with some issues at home she still developed the independence to be successful in school. “It’s obvious the key to life is education, so I don’t know why people are so lazy.”

By occupying herself at school Vang forgets about her struggles at home. “At home there is so much pressure on me. I take care of my brothers and do a lot of chores,” she said. Even though she deals with a lot of pressure and stress, she makes no excuses when it comes to her education. She said, “It’s challenging, but it’s a good challenge.”

The dedication that she has is noticed by others. Her personality is described by math teacher Andrew Walter. “Lynzie is a very outgoing student. She acts goofy, but when she is in an academic situation she is an achiever.” He added, “She is dedicated and hardworking about projects. She is the well rounded type of student that colleges are looking for.”   

Even though Vang deals with the difficulties of concentrating in school and the stress from her home life, her friends are her encouragers. Vang explains the importance of her friends: “I break down, but I eventually pick myself back up. If I do need help they will always be there, and if I can’t do it by myself, they will.”