After years and years of going through dead week and the dark period of time we call Finals Week, I’ve learned that no matter how we spin it, it’ll always pretty much suck. My freshman year I struggled with my course load and the forever impending doom of tests that could either make or break my overall grade. One night, I was so afraid of failing that my hand shook so bad that I couldn’t keep my pencil steady. I was —quite literally— shook. I, like many freshmen at the time, were not accustomed to that special blend of sleepless, over-caffeinated nights, followed by a dosage of barely manageable misery. All I can say to those of you who are feeling that same kind of pressure, is that the Finals Blues don’t last forever.
Each semester you learn from the mistakes you made semesters before. Studying habits change and eating habits change as well. Sleeping properly is a bit hard for everyone, but managing how many naps you take in a day could make all the difference between stressed out and rejuvenated. Personally, as the years trailed on, I learned how to better take care of myself. Running off of pure coffee and crippling fear of a slipping GPA obviously wasn’t turning out to be my best course of action. So I got a puppy. Not going to lie, I at one point took better care of her than I did of myself. I made sure —in those early years— that she was fed and had fresh water three times a day followed by a one-mile walk in the morning, afternoon, and evening. She had an abundance of toys that she played with, a plushy doggie bed to lie in, and all the happiness in the world.
I on the other hand, would eat half of a Pop Tart for breakfast —if I ate that morning— and for lunch I’d have snacks like a handful of chips, or a bite or two out of a grilled cheese sandwich that I would later ditch for a warm cup of coffee that I started drinking black. I wasn’t properly hydrated, fed, or rested. I lost more weight than should be humanly possible in the two-week span leading up to the week of finals. What made it even worse was that I wasn’t the kid who suddenly realized that tests were important at the end of the semester and needed to play “catch up”. No, I was the kid that struggled in most of my classes and had set appointments with my professors if I didn’t understand the topic of that week. I practically lived in the AARC, and it still didn’t help.
But I like I said before, if you’re smart, you’ll learn from your past mistakes and grow from them. I’m now a senior patiently waiting to graduate, and I have yet to flinch at the idea of Finals or the week that they’ll be occupying. I’m happy to say that looking back at my early years at SFA, I’ve learned how to be a better student, but most importantly, how to put myself before a test. The Final Blues will for a time be a nuisance to you, but work towards keeping that annoyance as simple as it can get. Be kind to yourself, if you don’t think you can, know that, you will. You’ll eventually get tired of giving tests power over you!
Photo by Deja Williams