The holiday season is upon us. We have eaten all the turkey, cranberry sauce, and stuffing imaginable. Now that Thanksgiving has passed, it's time for Christmas, Hanukkah, and all other December holidays to shine. The excitement is real; however, there is an entire month to get through before the celebrations may begin. And for college students like me, that month is total Hell (also known as finals).

Thanksgiving break is just a taste of the sweet life, taunting us until it is time to get back to the grind and hit the books. After stuffing their faces with turkey and pumpkin pie, students have three weeks to get their acts together. For some, this means learning an entire semester's worth of information. Other, perhaps more studious students, just have to deal with the immensely heavy workload thrown at them by professors. From essays to finals to group projects, the month of December seems never-ending.

I consider this time between Thanksgiving and Christmas one giant hump-day. It's a period of time in which vacation is so close, yet so far. The gift-giving spirit and cheer of the holiday season is so close that I can almost taste the candy canes and eggnog. The only thing standing in the way of me getting in the holiday spirit is studying for, and taking, tests that make up the highest percentage of my semester grades.

While getting through the loads of schoolwork is difficult, it is much harder to escape from the incessant Christmas music. I can only listen to "Jingle Bell Rock" so many times (unless it's within the movie "Mean Girls," in which case, put it on repeat please). Usually the overbearing nature of Christmas music makes me excited for the holiday season to end. The overplayed upbeat tunes are enough to turn me into the Grinch. However, I must admit that the cheerful songs annoy me during the final weeks of the semester because I must not allow myself to be distracted by them. If I had no tests to study for, I would have the Christmas music Pandora station playing on repeat.

The most important thing to remember during this rough time is that it will eventually come to an end. The fact of the matter is, finals can't last forever (although that is a great idea for a terrifying horror movie). Also, keep in mind that a letter grade does not determine knowledge. So, get back to school, and study hard. Keep in mind that good food, quality family time, and--if you're lucky--thoughtful presents are on the way. Now, stop procrastinating and hit the library!