We made it! We survived our first real semester of college. Pass or fail, we survived. Even in those moments where we were completely submerged and drowning in the stress, papers, exams, and projects, we somehow managed to resurface.
But how is that possible? Was it not just yesterday we were throwing our caps up shouting “CLASS OF 2015,” hugging the people around us, not really even thinking about the fact that we may possibly not see them again? Everything has happened so fast; how are we to keep up?
We went from graduating from some of the easiest schooling of our career to throwing ourselves into the best summer of our lives, dancing and laughing the nights away, sleeping until the sun was high in the sky only to rise as it fell and sang with the moon. We lost track of what day of the week it was because we seemingly felt infinite with our golden skin and sun-bleached hair and soaring hearts. We proceeded to then launch into a new education system, that challenged and stretched us thin, some of us learning our limits, others ignoring them to attempt something greater. We only knew the days because we had a test at 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, but we labeled the days as numbers, counting down how many hours you had left to study before you stared at a piece of paper that determined your GPA. Some of us chose to not even acknowledge the first four days of the week, only living for the last three, blurring them together with red Solo cups. We lived for the next exam or next study group session because you don’t understand anything happening so hopefully one of these other people do.
Thanksgiving comes along, but you weren’t looking forward to it, you were looking forward to that break in which you no longer had to calculate just how many hours of sleep you were going to get a night before your first class. You yearned for those five days, but they were fleeting and all too suddenly gone because everything is moving at a pace you can no longer control. Dead week devoured us and spit us back out into finals week which brutally abused us, the days once again becoming numbers in first, second, third, etc. as we counted down the remaining tests. Christmas came and left like a brisk winter breeze, the chance to even become remotely intrigued by the idea of the largely adored holiday practically nonexistent. It happened so abruptly we didn’t have the conscious effort to really appreciate what we were currently surrounded by.
New Year’s Eve leapt out from behind the corner, slamming us in full effect, emotions high and mingling as we reflected on 2015. But what is there to reflect on when all you can remember is the answer to the third question on that second test that you should have known but blanked on in the moment? What is there to really remember when every answer you gave any family member revolved around your university and grades and football games? What is there to miss when you realize your giddy five-year-old-self on Christmas morning was absent and you were just there?
Everything has happened so fast.
It’s now 2016, another year, another semester. Take the time to slow down your life, to find the little things that once brought you joy, no matter how minor. Make sure that you go outside not just when walking from class to class, but to just be outside. Smile at the people you find yourself awkwardly locking eyes with in the middle of lecture. Drink that cup of coffee slowly, even if it is your fourth one of the day; it’s OK, we all understand. Pet every dog you pass by and make sure you tell their owner how lucky they are for such a sweet soul. Remember to hug your roommates and thank them for putting up with your meltdowns and mess because they have them too. Buy a plant and name it something silly that causes everyone to laugh anytime you tell them. Lay in the grass and watch the stars with your closest friends when the sky is clear and talk about changing the world.
Don’t call the days by numbers, but their actual names, and pick a favorite one so that you always have something to look forward to. Mark your calendars and planners a week before a big holiday so that your sweet childish inner self can squeal gleefully and sparkle like the moon. Write things down, fold them up and put them in your shoe because things tend to fall out of our pockets when we aren't paying attention. Don’t drown out the days but remember to relish in the little things that you subconsciously do, for these are the most critical years of our lives in which we shape and transform into our future selves. If we are to constantly hustle things along and merely glance at something instead of really, truly gaze at it, then what will we become?
Slow down. Take a deep breath. Brace yourself for next semester and appreciate what is.
