As finals roll around and you find yourself drowning in papers and presentations, you ought to take a step back and look at where you are at. You have finished your first semester of college. Congratulations! Yes it was hard and yes there were times you wanted to give up, but you didn't. And look at what happened.

Whether you knew that college was something you wanted to do or or not, you should still be proud of yourself. Be proud of how much you have grown in the last four months, as a person and as a student. College is a life experience that you are never able to get back once it happens that you will hold with you for the rest of your life. Adjusting to a new place with new people and new ways of thinking is hard, and it isn't for everyone. People you start the semester with you may not end it with, and some you do. The friends you made now could be forever friends and some may not but with them this semester you survived and made it through and will always remember the people who helped your first semester be a little easier and be more comfortable. Change is a constant and you have adjusted yourself to 4 whole months of a complete unknown. And as excited as you are to be home (because who isn't ready for home cooked meals, and quality family time) and be in your comfort zone, don't forget how college treated you and how you got through it.

So here's to you, a now second semester freshman. As you continue to stress and worry about your grades this semester, take a break and a step back and realize how amazing you are. Pat yourself on the back because your future is still ahead of you - this is just one obstacle out of the way. Now enjoy your well deserved break because time is moving faster than you know it.