It is that time of the year again. That time when all hope is lost and it seems that the amount of work you have continues to pile up. For me that means countless hours in a practice room and a lot of time behind a computer typing papers. It is the time of the year for stress and tests and meltdowns.

But, it is also the time that I think people grow the most. At the beginning of the year, we all have these protective walls that we keep up when we meet new people. And as September rolls on, slowly, those walls begin to come down as new friendships are being created. And when those walls come down, I feel that we are more prone to sharing things about our lives that we otherwise would not share. And with that comes sharing our hardships and breaking down in front of one another.

I, for one, am not someone who is extremely open to most people. I only tell my most secret things to a small group of people. And with that, the only people who see me at my worst is limited to a small group. Over time, I have opened up to a lot more people, and it seems that my times of despair are at certain points in the semester.

The middle is where classes begin to get harder and professors expect more of there students. It is a time where activities and clubs are in full swing and things are happening all around. It is a time where test determine if we are going to drop a course or wait it out. It is the time of year when we are in desperate need of a hug and can't seem to find the right person.

This is also the time when we learn more about ourselves. We learn what we can handle as a person and who our biggest supporters are. We discover how asking for help can be beneficial and that by opening up can be magical. We can tear our walls down and in turn, others open up to us about their hardships.

We are at a point that seems so low, but the only way to go now is up.

So if you are having a hard time getting through this semester, remember that you can do whatever you put your mind to. Also, there are a lot of people who will support you.

And most of all, know that everyone is feeling this pressure. You aren't alone.