Although fall semester is winding down, it feels like I’m winding up, and I can’t be the only one. Fall break is always a welcome, relaxing change, but the insane rush of papers, projects and studying that follow it are anything but.
Finals are usually a challenging time for everyone, and this year is no different for the average ISU student. Unfortunately, I’m in the middle of attempting to complete my undergraduate degree all while preparing to move to Chicago by Jan. 3 to begin my graduate studies.
It is, in a word, awful.
I know we all get to this point in the semester and wonder how things ended up the way they are. How did we end up a few weeks from finishing up with almost no recollection of what has been covered in classes? Why weren’t we ever able to get a head start on homework, projects, studying, organization or any number of other good intentions that we began with?
Not only is that where I’m at with ISU, it’s unfortunately also where I’m at with Northwestern. I’m trying to figure out how and why I thought it would be okay to leave the important steps like financial aid and class enrollment until this point. Then I remember that my semester, like many other students’, has hardly been full of free time and extra moments for advanced planning.
Instead, the past 12 weeks have sped past in a blur of newspapers published, projects completed and quizzes crammed for (all with a healthy dose of stress crying, of course).
Over the course of this semester I have shared my tendencies toward perfectionism, procrastination and anxiety in this column, and unfortunately they’re all culminating in a flurry of forms, study guides and more.
Though my initial reaction has been to panic and send frenzied, regrettable emails to every person I can contact, I’ve been trying to keep my head on straight and remember that whatever will happen, will happen.
It’s not a comforting mantra to someone whose anxiety hinges on control. But at the same time, there is definitely something to be said for accepting the way things are.
Rather than view things from the perspective that they will happen and I can’t change them, it’s nice to think of it in different terms. Things will happen, of course, but we adjust and adapt and make it through regardless. After all, I’m writing this column and you’re reading it, so that must mean we’ve survived to this point by meeting things as they come.
I know not everyone is in the same boat that I’m currently in. Maybe some of you are better prepared and more organized (and you should share your techniques…) or maybe you’ve got something other than finals or financial aid weighing on your mind.
Whatever the situation, it seems like all we can do is hold on for the ride and hope for the best. In the meantime, I’m hoping my friends, family, coworkers and fellow students can excuse my erratic behavior and frenzied communication.
Whether you’re frantic over finals or still chilled out on Thanksgiving tryptophan, here’s hoping we all find a little time to unwind.
