Fall semester is fun and fresh. There’s football and holiday breaks. I’m not exactly sure what it is about spring semester, but it drags. But now, It’s April and, for college students, that means one thing- finals. There’s one month of school left and seemingly never-ending list of assignments. You have papers and projects and presentations and reflections and case studies and all of the school work that was put off until the end of the semester. If you’re anything like me, you’ve said “oh that’s not due until like April” as a justification for procrastination WAY more times than you can count. Well, now it’s April and everything that you thought was due at the end of the course is now due tomorrow. You have coffee flowing through an Iv and sometimes you forget to eat dinner. Your typing fingers cannot keep up with brain and your legs cannot keep up with your pace. It’s a lot- I get it. April is Tsunami, there’s little warning and a whole lot of potential damage (a little dramatic, yes I know). But, amidst the chaos and due dates and word counts, there’s a bright side.

That is, you’ve got this.

You will survive.

You will get the work done.

You will get the good grade.

You will succeed.

You will make it through to the end of this semester.

Your worth is not wrapped up into a grade or GPA. Yes, it matters and doing well is important, but that is not where your identity is. You are doing the best you can. You are hard-working. You are doing well. That is enough.

While yes, school work is important, it’s not as important as your well-being. There’s no amount of productivity that can come from an over-exhausted, over-caffeinated, over-stressed mind. Sure maybe it sounds a little counter-productive to take an afternoon and do nothing, but there’s no grade worth harming your health. Take your to-do list one thing at a time. You are less than four weeks away from a two or three-month vacation! Woohoo! You will have earned it.

You’re ready to be done with the semester, I understand that! But slow down for a minute and let your body catch up to your brain. You can only do so much at a time!

You’re important. Don’t overdo it! For the sake of your sanity, take a break and relax! Step back and breath. Talk a walk, go to the beach, watch a movie, do a face mask- whatever it is that will bring you a little bit of joy. Finish strong, but finish well. You’ve got this, so smile and dance a little, would ya?