The week we have all been cramming for is upon us…Finals Week.

It’s here and it’s not looking pretty. It is going to be a constant week of testing and late night cram sessions at the library to get you through. But finals week isn’t all that bad. Finals week is never final. It is not the end of the world as we know it and if you fail your macro final, it IS okay. The world will go on, and you will survive, TRUST ME. Finals week will test you harder than you’ve ever been tested before, but think about this: It will all be over by Friday. Friday will come and you will be on your way back home to your family and friends, and then you can truly get into the spirit of the holidays surrounded by your loved ones.

There will be no more textbooks or notebook paper covered in formulas and diagrams. There will be no more memorization of terms or a bank account full of late night Starbucks transactions. There will be no more nights where you finally crawl into bed at 3 a.m. because you were studying, or finger cramps from typing a 5-page paper. The end of finals is where it most matters. When it is all over there will only be relaxation, love, and holiday charm. There will be cookies, hot chocolate, Christmas trees and menorahs galore. There will be houses engulfed in decorations and snow falling from the sky (Sadly, not for this South Florida girl, but I can dream). There is no stress, tears, or frustration. There is only happiness.

So, my fellow students, as you’re sitting in the library on the verge of tears because your teacher RANDOMLY decides to make the final cumulative--remember it's all worth it. Once they post the final grades and you see all your hard work paid off, there is no better feeling. And even if you don’t do as well as you had hoped, and it seems like the end of the world, remember that no one is perfect. There will always be someone who’s going to be smarter, not as smart, or the “same” smart as you and no one ever has to know it. Finals week does is not the almighty decider of what your future holds. You are not a test, but sadly you do have to take them.

Even though Thanksgiving was last month, there is still so much finals week makes us thankful for. Be thankful that this is the final week that you have to learn about the way cells divide or that for some reason professors find it necessary to talk about a topic that won’t be on the final for an hour and a half. Be thankful that once you go home, you don’t have to think about school for basically a whole 3 weeks, and to me, that is enough to get me through the dreaded week to come.