So, here we are: almost at the end of my first semester junior year here at West Virginia University.

If there's anything new that I've learned since entering college, it's to never give up. Because once you fall, it will be hard to get back up again. We all struggle at one point or another, and I feel that college has allowed some of us to be brought down a peg or two.

With this in mind, college has become a conduit to instill humility to those of us who may need it the most. For example, if you ever see someone setting themselves up for failure, then you should reach out and help them. We may not know at the time what may have happened, but it would be futile to look at all the "what if"s. Every now and then, we may see ourselves having our own ups and downs, but, I guess, life is full of challenges that we must be able to overcome to see what tomorrow may have in store for us.

And now we're here. I have one final exam left to go until I am officially finished with this semester. I have come to notice that despite the challenges I faced in both my personal life and academic life, my anxiety has spiked only a few times over the course of these past few months. I've been surprisingly stress-free when dealing with hardships, which is rare and rather unsettling.

Despite my anxiety, I've found a sense of calm in moments where I usually would let my emotions get the better of me. Perhaps it's a newfound lack of care towards things that used to affect me so much more. This is arguably both a good and bad change. We need a healthy balance of eustress and distress, but for most college students that is an unattainable ideal because distress highly outweighs any sort of 'good' stress. It's been quite a while since I've experienced 'good' stress and for that, I truly cannot wait for the impending break to start, no matter how short.

I'm already halfway done with my junior year. Like most, I can hardly believe I've already been in college for almost 3 years. I am looking forward to getting closer to graduation, but I also am not ready to be done with college. My best friend and I have been making a Christmas list, full of adventures and finally getting to see what our home has to offer. I am looking forward to finally taking advantage of being 21, and creating new memories I will think of fondly. I want this Christmas season to be filled with less stay-at-home days, and more afternoons and nights spent enjoying company. I want to take full advantage of this break, by working on myself, and spending as much time as I can with both friends and family. I know the rest of junior year will hit me full stride once January comes around, but until then I look forward to a Christmas filled with more laughs, more joy, more love, more bonding experiences and of course, more hot chocolate.