If you are anything like me, then the spring semester always ends up seeming much worse than the fall semester. Maybe we're all taking harder classes in the spring (but I honestly don't think that's it). Maybe we're collectively trying to do more outside of class (that seems more likely). Maybe no one is sleeping very well (also highly likely). Maybe the weather is awful and unpredictable (I live in Ohio; it is) and it makes none of us want to brace the cold for class. Maybe we're all sick (we all are right now, trust me) because of the constant weather fluctuation and the fact that we're consistently around the same people. Regardless of the different factors that go into it, at my school, as well as most other schools I know, everyone seems to dread the spring semester quite a bit more than the fall semester.

I first noticed this phenomenon last year, when the sophomores in one of my classes asked myself and a few other freshmen about how we were doing during the first week of classes. The strange thing was, they didn't ask "How are you?" in a normal or casual small-talk kind of tone. They asked with what seemed like serious concern. They wanted to know if the spring semester had hit us yet. It hadn't. But it would.

Later in the semester, I would understand the panic and concern. It was cold, I was constantly coughing, or sneezing, or otherwise ill, I quickly became at least twice as busy and involved as I was the previous semester, and my classes became difficult, fast. I was always freezing, in a constant state of exhaustion, and I was usually hungry because my crazy schedule didn't always involve normal eating times. Spring semester was somehow so much harder than the fall and it was difficult to get a grasp of.

But, at the same time, while the spring held more challenges, it also held more rewards. I had more fun with friends, was constantly surrounded by amazing people that I cared about who mutually cared about me (even though we were all coughing and sniffling and sneezing), my classes were mostly interesting, and I got to be involved in so many awesome programs and events that I previously hadn't even known existed. I never felt alone or left out, I laughed more often, I was never bored, and I had an immense amount of support from so many people who were feeling the same overwhelming stress that I was. Spring semester may be more difficult to get through, but it also holds a lot of gifts and opportunities.

So, if you're feeling the same way that I am right now, it's time to pack the tissues and cough drops, bundle up in huge coats and snow boots, make sure you have time to get your coffee fix and head out into the cold and crazy of each and every day. After all, who can afford to miss out this semester?