It’s 1 a.m. You’ve been at the library since 2 p.m. All you’ve eaten today is a bag of salt and vinegar chips and a granola bar. The clock is ticking. Your energy is fleeting. There is a bruise on your forearm from pressing it against the table for 11 hours straight. College. Midterms. Hell.
Typing this from my new living quarters in the library, I have had my fair share of midterm scaries over the past week. As the studious woman that I am, I decided to spend the last hour compiling quotes for the students who have also hit rock bottom. Here lies 15 satisfyingly inspirational quotes for this very dark time in our lives.
1. “Failure is a great teacher and, if you are open to it, every mistake has a lesson to offer.” (Oprah Winfrey)
2. “Whenever I feel bad, I use that feeling to motivate me to work harder. I only allow myself one day to feel sorry for myself. When I’m not feeling my best I ask myself, ‘What are you gonna do about it?’ I use the negativity to fuel the transformation into a better me.” (Beyonce)
Beyonce said it. We have no choice but to obey. I don’t make the rules.
3. “Don’t waste a minute not being happy. If one window closes, run to the next window. Or break down a door.” (Brooke Shields)
4. “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” (Thomas Edison)
Or it’s dressed in a corduroy blazer and tells you that the exam is cumulative.
5. “If you’re going to do something tonight that you’ll be sorry for tomorrow morning, sleep late.” (Henny Youngman)
6. “I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that do not work.” (Thomas Edison)
Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, telephone, and motion picture. You can pass your BIT exam, and look this cute while doing it.
7. “Consider the postage stamp, its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to something until it gets there.” (Josh Billings)
8. “I am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship.” (Louisa May Alcott)
Passing this exam will bring you one step closer to your future. Be excited, not afraid!
9. “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again. This time more intelligently.” (Henry Ford)
10. And will you succeed? Yes you will indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)” (Dr. Suess)
Wise words from our lord and savior, Dr. Suess.
11. “Learn the rules like a pro so you can break them like an artist.” (Pablo Picasso)
12. “A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car, but if he has a university education he may steal the whole railroad.” (Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
It’s not a crime if FDR encourages it!
13. “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” (Nelson Mandela)
14. “Always walk through life as if you have something new to learn, and you will.” (Vernon Howard)
Take a deep breath. This is the most expensive knowledge you will ever receive.
15. “What we learn with pleasure we never forget.” (Alfred Mercier)
It may seem hard to realize after getting four hours of sleep, but you will look back on this moment in 10 years and wish you were studying for an exam. While you’re sitting in the library with your roommates, you could be nursing two crying babies or working overtime to write a proposal. Now that I think about it, a 2 hour written exam on post-colonial literature doesn’t sound so bad… we can do this.