I was having a really bad day.
I could list all of the things that made it such a particularly horrible day—it basically consisted of this: I was tired, I was getting over strep throat and I was stressed about too many things to count. To put it simply, I was struggling.
Normally, I’m a glass-half-full kind of girl, but on that particular day, I was having a hard time.
At around 3:00 that afternoon, my phone buzzed with a call from my mom. I sighed heavily before answering the phone and debriefing her on everything I was dealing with.
And in five simple words, she responded, saying, “Relax. You’re doing just fine.”
They were straightforward words on the surface, but I felt the biggest weight being lifted off of my shoulders almost immediately. I took a deep breath and scrunched up my eyes to keep the tears that had suddenly sprung from spilling down my cheeks. I didn’t realize until that moment that those were exactly the words I needed to hear.
I’m sure I’m not the only girl who is hard on herself by nature. I have a nasty habit of comparing myself to others, furthered by social media and its popularity. I often convince myself that I’m the only one who doesn’t have her shit completely together. But of course, this isn’t true.
In reality, we all have so much going on—from balancing school to extracurriculars to a social life, as well as dealing with the pressures of simply being human. Especially in college, we’re all going through a time of huge personal growth and change, trying to figure out what we are going to do with our lives, who we are and who we are going to become in the future.
I tend to be a pretty happy person in general, so it can be hard for me to grasp that sometimes, life can be just plain difficult, even if there isn’t a definitive reason. But on these difficult days, sometimes all we need are a few positive words to lift us up.
I know it may not seem like a lot, but in reality, small words of encouragement can go a long way. Sometimes, all that someone needs is to hear that they’re doing okay, that they’re loved, that someone is proud of them.
As we approach finals week and a stressful end to the semester, don’t be afraid to share words of encouragement to/with others. Compliment your best friends, a random girl in your dorm or the stranger in front of you at Starbucks. If you appreciate something about someone, tell them! Let people know that that their work is recognized, that you’re thankful for them, that you’re happy they exist. Tell people that you love their jeans, that their laugh is infectious, that you think they’re absolutely great—small affirmations and words can help make even the darkest day a little sunnier.
So, a reminder to everyone reading this: You got this. Take a breath. You’re doing just fine.
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Photos: 1, 2 provided by author