Carleigh’s Corner: A Letter of Encouragement to Peers

By Carleigh Holt

HottyToddy Intern

This week I decided to take a different approach to my column. Finals are approaching and the holidays are right around the corner. Thanksgiving Break was a nice pause to daily life, but it is time to start the dreaded week before finals. I wanted to offer a word of encouragement to my peers and anyone else interested.

It has been a hard semester with schedules back to “normal” in the classroom or work environment. You may feel burned out, or you are just ready to be done with the year in general. But even the holidays can be stressful time of year, from picking out the perfect gifts for special people in your life to experiencing the season without a loved one for the first time.

We students are in a time in our lives where it is crucial to stay on top of our game, especially in these last two weeks of the semester. We’ll pack the library and Starbucks while we study into the late hours of the night. I know that the special number of a GPA may mean keeping or losing scholarship money. You may be one or two points away from that desired grade in a class, so you are begging for mercy from your professors. 

I mention all of this to say that it is OK to take a breath during these next couple of weeks. It is OK to stop looking at highlighted flashcards and cramming information and instead take an hour to do something you would like to do. Find something that makes you happy and take a break from the espresso shots.

Understand that you have plenty of company as other students walk the same hallways that you do and share in the same stresses that you face, at least for the week or so.