By: Rhythm Badal
A quarter way through the semester and I can already feel my health and obligations slipping away from me. At this point, we have all received, with either delight or sorrow, our midterms. The chaos of studying for exams and traveling for Fall Break may have left some of us on uneven ground. “Luckily,” it is the start of a new quarter! Although we might not have time to make huge life developments, we might be able to set small achievable goals. Below I have made a list of some quarter semester resolutions that may help as we approach the end of the semester.
1. Keep school work organized.
If you’re like me and returned from a weekend of little sleep to a disastrous room, you might feel disheveled. No doubt, life would be much easier if we could simply keep our rooms and backpacks clean. For me, this is a pretty unrealistic expectation. As hard as I may try, my room still proves to be a pit of clothes, papers, makeup, and Saturday night Subway remains. Rather than focusing on the immense burden of purging my entire room, I have taken on the small project of organizing my school work. This means recovering the crumpled-up notes, assignments, and tests at the bottom of my bag and ordering them. Our rooms may remain a place of chaos, but if our school work is separate from the disarray, we might feel more prepared for our week.
2. Make moving a priority.
My second resolution is to move. My mother used to tell me that, “in still water disease festers.” She held the notion that without movement, our minds breed too many thoughts. We soon become cluttered, stressed, and unhappy. At Wake, it is easy to remain stagnant: whether we are seated in class or in the library studying. With the pressing stressors in our lives, the extra weight of going to the gym can seem overwhelming. However, movement does not solely entail “working-out.” Instead, it can be any physical activity outside of our regular routines. This could be taking a walk or stretching in our room, as long as we are getting out of our head and putting that energy toward our body.
3. Try something new.
Yes, I know “try something new” is often what we hear from our parents, and as much as I would like to rebel, I can’t help but see the merit of this idea. It is easy to get comfortable in a routine. At this point in the year we have settled into a friend group or an organization, which is great; but sometimes it is healthy to break this pattern. Whether we go by ourselves or with others, taking time to do new things will make us feel more productive. Attempt to go to a museum or an event on campus. This is an easy way to expand your social circle and relieve yourself from the monotony you may feel.
4. Sleep.
People talk a lot about FOMO, but I have never regretted staying in on a Wednesday night and getting a few extra hours of sleep. While I still might not be as prepared as I would like, at least I don’t feel like a zombie as I watch everyone show up with bags under their eyes, and X’s on their hands at 9am every Thursday. This quarter move sleep up on your priority list.