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“It’s very important to take care of yourself. Everyone’s lives are so busy. Take at least an hour a day to recharge and do whatever makes you better. For grown-ups, whether it’s a spa, sitting in a park with a book, or coffee, take time for yourself.” -Ana Ivanovic

Being a college student, the holiday season is especially tough.  There are the normal stresses of the season with family gatherings and the obligations associated with them.  Then, there are also all the school deadlines and exams and finals.  These two parts of your life are separate and neither side considers the other.

I am now a sophomore in college and am going through this issue for the second time.  When I first started college, I went home more.  Every time, I went home my days were planned for me, and I was told what we had to do.  I was obligated to do certain things and visit certain family members even though I was home for less than 48 hours and had homework and needed to rest.  I tried multiple times to explain this, but every time I was made out to be the bad guy, so I stopped going home except for longer breaks.

Even that doesn’t really solve the problem.  This year, I went home for a week for Thanksgiving break.  I didn’t end of spending the whole week either.  Everyone keep telling me I needed to do this and that, and honestly, there wasn’t enough time in a week.  Then, I was expected to go see family who didn’t invite me to Thanksgiving out of spite, and also flaked on giving me a ride back to college.  I ended up having to go back days early on Thanksgiving day because that was the only ride I could get back.  I had to cancel plans with friends and family and appointments.  Even with all this somehow I’m horrible, but I didn’t have a choice.  College is important to me and I can’t just let it go.

Then going back to school, there are tons of projects and deadlines and exams to wrap up the semester before Christmas break.  It’s a really stressful time just for the school work.  Then, you have family calling to tell you all the plans you have and who you need to buy gifts for.  College Students don’t really have time to shop around finals.  Also, they are pretty much broke until they get loans or scholarships for the spring semester.

I’m not saying family isn’t important because they are.  However, they need to realize that college students have other important things going on, and they need to be understanding of that.  My family makes me feel guilty for working hard at college, and that isn’t right.  I need to be able to take care of myself too.

-Love, Dee

“It is not only the scenery you miss by going too fast- You also miss the sense of where you are going and why.” -Eddie Cantor

In this current age, everything is so fast paced and busy. There is never any down time. I can’t live like that. Sure being busy every moment distracts you from bad thoughts, but it also takes away the meaning of the big picture. Repeating the same tasks over and over sparing no time takes all the fun out of life.

Sometimes, I feel like everyone around me is rushing around, but I’m just standing still. I don’t really do extra things to fill my life up. I barely have the motivation to do the essential tasks. I don’t know how I could find the energy to join clubs and organizations and take extra jobs. Maybe I’m being a slacker and not doing all the things I should. At the same time, every venture and class and social interaction leaves me exhausted. I feel the need to try to make everything perfect and have to put on a whole charade and it’s tiring. I stress about every detail.

I feel like my life maybe isn’t as meaningful as these other people who juggle so many different responsibilities and activities. I could never compete with that. I don’t have any special talents or interests that I take part in. I do what I have to, and the rest of the time I distract myself from my thoughts by reading or writing or just doing things I enjoy. I’m never really busy and I make time for things and people that matter.

“A person being ‘too busy’ is a myth. People make time for the things that are really important to them!” -Mandy Hale

I wonder many times if people are really as busy as the say or if it is a matter of priorities. I mean they always have an excuse and it seems valid. The song “Cat’s in the Cradle” by Harry Chapin is an example. The man in the song never has time for his family. He is always too busy. When he finally has time for his son, it’s too late. He prioritized his life in the wrong order and ended up alone. His job was important but not more important than his son.

I’m not in any way saying that being busy is wrong. I just feel like sometimes its not really busy it’s that you are a lower priority than whatever else is going on. I mean realistically it takes a couple of seconds to send a text. I’m glad that I have less things going on in my life, so it makes it easier to prioritize the people and things that are important to me. Some people take advantage of this and the fact that I’m always around, but that doesn’t make me regret. I’ve never really felt like a priority to anyone, and sometimes that really hurts. At the same time, it doesn’t stop me from making them a priority of mine. I don’t want to have to live with the regret of not being there or making time with them in the future no matter what they do. They have to live with their choices not me. I’d rather be happy and make time for the important things even if that means not doing extra things.

-Love, Dee