Dear students everywhere,

It's finals week. The week that leaves us in emotional messes--crying, stressing, studying, hungry, angry, worried...I think we've all probably already felt every emotion known to man at this point. We're either buried under all our work, jittery from too much coffee, deprived of sleep and wanting it more than ever. We bounce from "I can do this" to "why do I bother?" to "is this even worth it?" And let me tell you...

It's okay to feel this way. It's okay to not be okay. It's okay that you're questioning everything you've done and everything you're doing. It's okay that you feel like a failure; it's okay that you've cried over all your work more than once, or twice, or ten times; it's okay that you're ready to quit. It's okay.

Because we're all feeling it. We all feel stressed, overworked, underprepared; we're all being too hard on ourselves right now. Go walk around the library, a study hall, or maybe even the closest coffee shop, and I guarantee you'll see the same thing--at least one person, burying their face in their hands, or wiping tears off their face, or rolling their eyes in frustration, or trying to sit still while the caffeine they had too much of ripples through their bodies, or straining to keep their eyes open for just one. more. hour. You'll probably see yourself in one of them at some point.

It's crazy to think about. That girl sitting next to you in the coffee shop, quietly studying on her laptop and listening to whatever's playing through her headphones--she might feel like she's being torn apart little by little with every cherished minute that ticks by. Or that guy across the room in library, scratching his head and slumping in his chair as he slides his textbook across the table because he can't stand to read it anymore--he might think he's going to fail his final tomorrow. They're just like you.

You're not alone. Finals are a lot of terrible things, but just like anything, something beautiful can be taken from it. You and thousands upon thousands of others are all feeling the same way, whatever it may be. The extravagant wonder of humanity is that across the world, people feel the same way you do. There's nothing you can feel that someone else can't. As much as you stand apart from everyone else--because we're all special and unique in our own beautiful way--every emotion you've felt, every burden you've carried? Someone's felt and carried that, too.

Experience is an odd thing. We all go through and cope with them differently, but yet they're all the same. There isn't anything new under the sun. And because of that, someone, somewhere, is going through the same thing as you. Maybe they're not okay either. Maybe they don't feel how you do, but there's a relation, and with relation comes connection, and with connection comes healing.

But finals. The big, terrifying monster we'll be fighting the next few days. It's an experience. Maybe a stressful one. Maybe an ugly one. Maybe, by some strange miracle, an easy one. Whatever kind of week this week is for you, remember: that girl in the coffee shop, that guy in the library--they're going through it, too. Maybe they're feeling exactly as you are. You're not alone, so please don't feel that way. Reach out to those who know what you're going through. Let them be a light, an encouragement, a solace to you. Don't go through finals week alone. Fight this monster with others. With friends. With family. Together.

Dear people everywhere,

Maybe you're not a student--maybe you have a job, someone you love, a family. Maybe you're successful, making a good living, happy with what and who you have. Or maybe you're struggling, going through something hard, or discontent with what you have.

I just want you to know, everything I said--it applies to you too. People don't automatically stop understanding once you're on your own, making your own living. There's still people who still fight battles, too. And these monsters they're also facing are bigger, stronger, and greater in number than they used to be, back when things were simpler.

You're still not alone. No matter where you are in your life right now, there's never a moment where you're all by yourself. People are always there, waiting for you, standing by you, fighting with you.

So, whoever you are...

Pause. Breathe. Then go face those finals. Go take on that job. Go face that monster and refuse to accept defeat. Stand strong. And do it together. Because as one, we're unstoppable. We're unshakeable. And we're victorious.

Sincerely,

That college guy who never stops learning