Finals week thoughts: wake up and smell the perspective

My fellow Corban students, I promise you that Finals Week won’t kill you. Yes, you may feel ‘super stressed’ and very behind in your course, but realistically, you won’t die.

I, too, was singing the blues of finals and hoping to die before they could kill me. I have spent a culmination of nine hours studying over just two of the exams I have to take when I suddenly had an epiphany.

I’m sitting here wanting to die over a 300-level core class for my English degree from a privileged Christian university. The worst that could happen to me is a C at the end of the course. However, I live in a fully functional dorm with a bed, a bathroom and Wi-Fi. I have an All-Access Pass to the dining hall where I don’t have to buy or prepare any of my meals. I freely practice my religion because this country and this particular university allows me to express my love for Jesus and learn more about His Word. As a woman and a person of color, sure – there are some drawbacks that I face. However, the community I live in has never discredited me or pushed me to feel ostracized or marginalized.

Meanwhile, there are people who live in the same country I do who are physically dying. Whether it’s a fatal disease like cancer, poverty, abortion, gang violence, substance abuse, mental health issues, etc., there are people facing real-life problems that are so much more difficult than my two-page exam. While my exam only lasts two hours, others are fighting for their lives on a daily-basis and always pushing for the motivation to live.

On a global scale, women are still fighting for basic human rights in other countries like the Middle East. In other places, people are still seeking aid due to natural disasters that were completely out of their control or are desperately trying to pull together their war-torn communities. Moreover, most people can’t even find clean water sources and provide food for their families.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to say, “Wow! Look how much less your life sucks in comparison to others!” I want us all to gain perspective. I want us to own up to the fact that the cards we’ve been dealt with are extremely favorable and put us in a position where we have the choice to do anything we want. More so, I challenge everyone to take a step back and realize that we’ve been extremely blessed in so many different aspects of our lives. Once you’ve done that, kick your finals in the butt and for the sake of your grade, get off of Netflix and start studying.