When you get too caught up in the stresses of life, it's easy to forget what's left to be grateful for. In only one week, you have two essays, a big exam, and unending readings, and on top of that, you somehow have to keep up with extracurriculars, a social life, and getting enough sleep. Everything gets smushed together in such a small amount of time, which makes you ask: What is the point?

I can get caught in the cycle of complaining about everything I have to do, but that never makes me feel better. Instead, I think about what I'm grateful for—my blessings. Thinking of my blessings inspires me to keep going. My support system will never give up on me, so I should never give up on myself. When I'm stuck in a rut, I force myself to stop lingering on the deadlines, and to count my blessings instead. My list looks a little something like this:

1. My Parents

My parents are only a phone call away, but I'm also lucky to go to college close enough to visit home every now and then. Every time I come home, my parents treat me like a princess. During my last visit, I woke up at 1 PM on a Sunday; I really like my sleep. My parents had already eaten without me, but they still put together a special meal for me. My dad bought me a fresh loaf of bread from the bakery and made me eggs (sunny-side up, my favorite), and my mom made me one of her signature fruit smoothies. A personal breakfast is one out of countless things that my parents will do for me.

2. My Siblings

I'm best friends with all of my siblings. My two sisters are ten and twelve years older than me; one lives in Buffalo, and the other in California. My younger brother just started his freshman year at Notre Dame. We all live far away from each other, and we have unique age differences, but we still get along! My siblings and I have our special quirks and inside jokes, and we're oddly close. If you want to marry one of us, you need each sibling's approval. Luckily, one of my sisters married a guy that exceeds our expectations, so I'm grateful to say that I now have four siblings instead of three.

3. My Boyfriend

Imagine this: A magical Canadian man speaks three languages and travels to the United States often to visit you. He takes care of you when you're sick, stays up late with you when you have a big assignment to finish, and eats McDonald's with you at 2 in the morning. He impresses your dad by installing a new toilet in your bathroom, and your mom by walking her to and from the car every time she leaves the house. His chivalry, witty sense of humor, and genuine interest in others makes him best friends with your siblings and friends, and they talk about him more than you talk about him. Even your Calculus professor gets excited every time she sees him. Yup, that's my boyfriend.

4. My Cousin-Best Friend

We played dress up, invented silly childhood games, and laughed at family drama together. We never once got in a fight, and we probably never will. We were there for each other through awkward middle school pubescence, hating high school, and transitioning to college. And as we got older, our relationship has only grown. Today, we order clothes online together so we don't have to pay for shipping twice, we call each other every time college becomes too much, and we share pictures and articles that remind us of each other throughout the day. She has shared every moment of my life with me, and it's a plus that my best friend is also related to me.

5. My Roommates

Roommates since freshman year of college, and still happily living together during the second semester of our sophomore year. They say that roommates are necessary to get through orientation and the first few weeks of college, then you branch out to your own friends and then roommates simply become people you live with. Well, what they say isn't always accurate. My roommates are the people I come home to every day; we're a family. We support each other, showing off each other's accomplishments to other friends, like parents would. We care for each other, helping one another get through the hardest parts of college. In between, we have a whole lot of fun, because every morning and every night begins and ends with each other.

6. My High School Teachers and College Professors

I had the most caring high school teachers, and I didn't know what to expect when I went to college. Going to a small liberal arts school, there is an average of twenty students in each of my classes. My professors want to help their students, and it's clear that they care about each of us individually. I am grateful for my past and present education because of the teachers and professors who have guided me. They expected a lot from me, but they also believed in me. They taught me material in the classroom, and how to believe in myself.

7. My Sorority

I never planned to join a sorority in college; I somehow stumbled along a group of funny, smart, and caring girls that I now call my sisters. I didn't have that many girl friends in high school, and these girls exceed any expectations I have about friendship. When I'm with them, I don't care about judgement. Whether we're staying in together and ordering Indian food, or hosting an all-campus event, I'm always guaranteed a night full of laughing, dancing, and memories to last a lifetime.

8. My Guy Friends

I like to tell people that I'm friends with a British lord who lives in Connecticut. Then I show him off to people so that they can be impressed by his accent. What I neglect to mention is that he is one of my most loyal friends. On a typical night out to dinner with him and our other guy friends, they will open doors for me, pull out my chair, and check to make sure I take the customer copy of my receipt in case the waiter does something fraudulent with it. They're also always on the lookout for bad guys around me, mainly because they love my boyfriend so much that they feel more obligated to protect me. My guy friends prove that chivalry is not dead!

9. My Classmate Friends

Some moments cannot be experienced with friends, and are instead experienced with stranger-classmates who become friends. My favorite friendships are the ones that develop inside the classroom and other educational experiences. Over the last two years, I've made friends with classmates in my Psychology, English, and Dance classes, and I love having conversations with them outside of class. Releasing my inner nerd entails applying what I learn in class to real life, and what better way to do that than to discuss these topics with classmates? My favorite academic experience so far has been traveling with a group of students to Nicaragua last spring break. Immersing ourselves in a different country with each other brought us so close together, and I still get giddy every time I run into someone on campus from the group.

10. My Childhood Friends

My childhood friends and I had a lot of adventures together. We went to Catholic elementary school, so that explains a chunk of it. No one else will understand the rosaries we were forced to pray, the Bible passages we memorized, and the dances we learned to praise and worship songs. Outside church, we spent our weekends having sleepovers, attempting to start a band (and failing), giving each other makeovers, prank calling boys we had secret crushes on, and crying about going to different schools after sixth grade graduation. When I reflect on my elementary school friendships, I feel nothing but happiness. Last summer, I reunited with my best friend from fifth grade. After seeing each other for the first time in five years, it felt like nothing changed. She will always be my best friend.

I'm definitely missing a number of things on this list, and I need more than two hands to count all my blessings. I encourage you to make your own list of blessings, and then look back on it when things get tough. When life seems to be passing by too quickly, the important people tend to get blurred. Reflecting on my blessings reminds me of how much I have to be grateful for.

How lucky I am to live such a wonderful life.