This semester, I have learned to prioritize myself and my personal needs before dedicating myself to my academic priorities. If I am too tired to study for a test, I’ll sleep and see what I can do in the morning. If I feel like I can’t handle doing any more work, I’ll take an hour break away from it. If I feel sick, I’ll take the rest I need and let myself relax. Focusing on living in the moment has allowed me to grow personally and academically. Now, I feel a lot more secure and proud of my grades. I take time to reflect on my feelings by journaling and talking to my friends and family. My headspace is clear because I allow myself to indulge in whatever I feel necessary at the moment.
I have been through a few unfortunate events this semester, but giving myself time to recover and rest has helped my healing process greatly. Sometimes, it’s better to miss school for a day instead of continuing a harmful cycle of waking up, going to school, and doing work until late at night.
An important lesson I have heard of before but have only recently implemented was the idea that nothing is accomplished without an active start. If you don’t actively work to do something, whether it be starting a new puzzle, going on that first run, or joining a new club, you’ll never get anything done, never finish the puzzle, never run a marathon, never win awards. Of course, starting something new won’t guarantee that you’ll achieve your highest goal, but you can’t get there without a starting point. That said, this does not mean you always have to be active and always have to be trying something new. Dedicating time for rest and recovery is extremely important, as well.
This semester, I have worked hard to achieve a balance between work and relaxation. A feeling I have always absolutely dreaded is when I am so overwhelmed with all I need to do that I cannot even do anything. This situation creates a cycle where I am overly stressed with my work but can’t even bring myself to start, and then I get overwhelmed about not being able to start, then I get even more stressed. In order to avoid this feeling, I clearly distinguish between time to work and time to relax. Every day I make sure to give myself enough time to rest and recover, even if that means staring into space for a bit. Then, I give myself time to work without distractions. Having a clear intention allows me to fully indulge in whatever I need to do. I find multitasking extremely unproductive and more overwhelming than anything else. I used to find myself partaking in tasks like watching TV while eating, doing two homework assignments at once, or even playing a video game and having a TV show split-screened side-by-side on my device. By doing these things, I was no longer living in the moment or with a true intention.
For students going into senior year, I would say relax. Let yourself do work as it comes. A quote that I find telling is from Annie Dillard, who said, “how we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” When you think about it too much, it starts to feel a bit sad. Our individual lives don’t have to be spent achieving the most accomplishments, competing with others, or earning the most money. All we should focus on is living a life that’s best for us, which means allowing ourselves to be happy and find joy in everything we do. There’s no point taking every word people say, every media we consume, and every grade that we get as seriously as we often do. We should grow to become better versions of ourselves, care about the people around us, and learn how to let ourselves love fully.
