Ever been on a roller coaster that's a little too fast and steep to be completely enjoyable? That's the quarter system for you. Just when you think you're in control, it quadruples in speed. There may even be points where you think that you can't handle any more, but, somehow, you always come out alive. However, in order to survive, you first have to go through this ten-step emotional roller coaster to get to the other side of the ten-week tunnel.
WEEK 1: CONFIDENT
You come back from your break, rejuvenated and excited to learn. Visions of a 4.0 dance in your head. You've thought of new study techniques, and maybe you even bought a planner. You're all color-coded and ready to go!
WEEK 2: ALL-KNOWING
The confidence from week one is still pulsing through your veins, and you feel in control. Your classes seem manageable and you don't understand why people are struggling. You can answer questions in class. You might even scoff at the ones offered by your classmates.
WEEK 3: DETERMINED
By now, you've survived a quiz or two and have a good handle on the material. You feel capable in your abilities. You're fierce and motivated.
WEEK 4: SELF-MOTIVATING
Midterm season is creeping up on you. You start to panic a little, so you start giving yourself pep talks in the shower in order to maintain your cool. You talk yourself up until you can't possibly feel down.
WEEK 5: LOST
Midterms have hit you like a wave and you're wiped out. You find yourself evaluating how well you know the material and feel a little lost. The panic hits full throttle.
WEEK 6: DENIAL
Your midterms are hopefully over and done with, causing you to sink into the calm before the actual storm. You step back from your panicked state and you find yourself in the denial stage. You feel safe and unconcerned about all the work that is upon you.
WEEK 7: OVERWHELMED
All that work catches up to you, and you are completely overwhelmed. You find yourself shedding a few tears in frustration. You start to overdramatize everything. During this week, a bird waking you up five minutes earlier than your alarm can be detrimental to your mood for the rest of your day.
WEEK 8: CAFFEINATED
You realize that freaking out doesn't help the learning process. Instead, you sit down and schedule out how you're going to study for finals. Here, you're semi-organized again, motivated, and extremely caffeinated.
WEEK 9: ONE-TRACK MIND
You can't really think of anything other than the impending doom that is finals. Getting ready makes you feel guilty, so you start only wearing workout clothes and letting the face out au naturel. You try to stick to your study regime as best as you can.
WEEK 10: WERKING
You're putting in werk. You can't tell the difference between night and day anymore because, when you never leave the library, they kind of just blur together. Your bank account is slowly depleting from all the library café purchases you have to make since home is somewhere you no longer go.
POST FINALS:
You're done! You survived the horrible torture that is a quarter. You're exhausted, both mentally and physically, and, at this point, there is only one thing on your mind: sleep. Hours upon hours of sleep. This is what you've been fantasizing over for the past couple of weeks. You're finally able to pass out with the satisfying knowledge that you're done, and therefore free!
That is...until next quarter...
