If there's one thing I've learned over the past two years, it is that a human needs a safe place to sit, recollect, and regain composure. The world we live in is, generally, a whirlwind of information from a million and one different places, each holding their own stories that come to us over many different mediums. Between Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook alone, there will never be enough hours in a lifetime to absorb the constant flow of data. As if the stream of digital photos and text wasn't enough, there is also the generalities of life that each person needs to move through each day. Working, learning, and regularly communicating with people takes a toll and can leave a person feeling worn-down and drained.

In the midst of the aforementioned, a person needs a space to find peace of mind.

In the past year, I've come to believe that this is precisely the case. Last year was my freshman year of college, and I found myself entirely overwhelmed with hundreds of new faces each day, entirely displaced miles away from my family, my friends, and everything I knew. In short, I felt as if I was surrounded by only chaos and strangers, of whom I wasn't sure who I was truly friends with and who I would find myself distanced with by the end of the week.

My escape, at the time, consisted only of the four walls of my dorm, though I found no solace when I was caged in by books in a room that would never truly be a home away from home. If nothing else, it was suffocating and I needed a place to unwind and be myself.

I count myself lucky to say that I found my "happy place." By my second semester, I spent my spare time integrating myself in a radio station I feel that I can truly be myself at, with people who I count as my friends when everything else in my life feels as if it is hindering on too much. It has become a place to take a break from the books and stress of life to relax and be myself for even an hour.

Having a space to decompress and break away from the rut of everyday life is, in my opinion, crucial. Of course, this "place" may also be an activity or a general group of people. Hiking, reading, a club or Greek organization, or otherwise are not necessarily places but serve the same purpose of providing a safe place for a person in need of a spot away from the rest of the world.

This place, as I have described, is meant to be a safe haven, away from the troubles and worries of life. As its own form of therapy, I can only recommend that each and every person find their own little slice of peace from the constant noise, to stretch yourself out and be entirely comfortable in your own skin as who you are. Believe me, you'll only find yourself feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world with renewed vigor.