I don't know what they put in the air here, but for some reason, this entire past week seemed to have been everyone's absolute low. I don't know about non-freshmen, but I'm guessing they weren't feeling too hot either. Damn, last week was seriously so awful. Everything that could've gone wrong did, and I don't think I've felt this horrible since my early senior year of high school. Wait a minute, I'm starting to see a pattern here... Anyways, I'm really not being dramatic when I say that you all probably need some sort of support and encouragement, even if it's from a random stranger on the internet.

So, at this point, you're probably wondering what type of encouragement I could possibly give that isn't incredibly cliché. But as an old friend once said, clichés become cliché because they're such important truths that they become overused and eventually lose its meaning. I want to tell you (what, three or four) viewers that things will get better because I mean, how much worse can things get? For what it's worth, I'd say that I'm doing better now, and it seems like my friends are slowly feeling better. But I don't know if that's going to make you feel better. I could also say that I'm also here to listen, but everyone knows those are pretty empty words for most people. I think the most encouraging thing I can really say is to remember that life is about 50% happiness and 50% sadness, no matter what you do or who you become. These just happen to be sad times right now. You should read my Mood Journal article for more on that topic. Please, just read my articles, please. I need an ego boost right now, I'm begging you.

From what I've noticed, a lot of people's sadness came from what I'd describe as a general feeling of unworthiness. Not to brag, but I happen to be an expert on never feeling like I'm good enough, so allow me to give some advice. If someone's treated you unfairly this week, do your very best to remember that you truly do not deserve that kind of treatment from other people. As another old friend once said, if you truly believe in equality, then you need to believe that you are also worthy of fair treatment and basic respect. I know it's hard, trust me, I know. We're encouraged to be very forgiving and understanding (especially if you're a woman), and those are great traits to have, but you have to make sure you're not confusing those traits with simply lacking self-respect and enabling poor treatment. If you're just feeling lonely (which is very valid and something I think most of us freshmen are going through), I seriously challenge you to find things to do that you enjoy that don't require friends. I've joined Canvas Club here, which means that I get to paint every Wednesday, which is awesome. Unfortunately, I have a test tomorrow (thanks, Ghiladi) and won't be able to go tonight. Basically, try to realize that you do not always need friends in order to have fun. That being said, it doesn't hurt to reach out to people you're sort-of friends with. Nobody wants to make the first move, but it's essential for developing strong friendships. Then again, what do I know?

To sum up, I think many of us are going through some dark times. And I'm not saying that to try and invalidate anyone. Just because everyone's feeling kind of sad doesn't mean that they're somehow any less sad. Things will absolutely get better, and you're going to learn more about yourself from this. Please hang in there because you've got this. Or maybe you don't. I don't know you.