Seven has always been my lucky number. My mom’s house growing up was number seven, I weighed seven pounds at birth, and seven never seems to fail me when someone asks me to pick a number between one and ten. With a special place in my heart for the number seven, I’ve decided that with only seven weeks left in the semester, it’s the right time to check in with ourselves and make sure we’ve done everything we should do before we leave Atlanta for the summer. Here are some suggestions to make the most of these remaining seven weeks.
Home Is Where the Heart Is
If I were to flashback to move-in day, I’d be reminded of the strange feeling in my stomach as I sat on a really uncomfortable mattress and gazed at the total emptiness of the four blank walls. I thought that this place could never feel like home to me. But, as this year has gone on, I’ve realized that it’s not about where you live – it’s whom you’re living with. My hall mates have been with me through late nights in the study lounge and early morning power walks to class. Not only have they been there to greet me with 2 AM snacks post-Mags, but they’ve also been there to share a night in when I’m not up for the frat row scene. Spending time with this irreplaceable mix of people who have transformed what was merely a living space into your home away from home during the next few weeks is a definite must. It’s as easy as committing to weekly sushi nights or movie nights. Or, perhaps, it’s a weekly venting session over ice cream (my personal favorite).
Release Your Inner Social Butterfly
If coming to college teaches you anything, it’s balance. Yes, it’s important to get good grades, but it’s no secret that a healthy social life is key to success. Personally, the increased workload second semester has made it that much harder to remind myself that going out is often more productive than a night of FOMO, which consists of simultaneously watching Netflix while trying to keep my eyes open to read my statistics textbook. That being said, prioritize what will be the best nights to go out and be sure to leave room in your work schedule for the most anticipated events of your social calendar. Four months without Maggie’s and Steak and Shake is going to be rough.
Club (Libs) Going Up on a Tuesday
Speaking to the more studious end of the spectrum, seven weeks left means that over half an academic semester is set in stone. Round one of midterms has passed in most classes. Despite our especially heightened motivation to hit up the library during finals week, as it becomes the “it” place to be, it doesn’t mean that now is the time to slack off. Push yourself to go to the library and start figuring out what needs to be done to get your grades where you want them to be by the end of semester final marks. Try figuring out which classes you need allocate more effort to and how you can actually make that effort. Getting those good grades won’t only feel rewarding for ending second semester on a high note, but you’ll get the fulfillment of entire academic year on a high note.
The Best Is Yet To Come
There’s a lot to accomplish before the year ends, both academically and socially. It’s important to make the most of our time now, but we should also take time to reflect on the year in passing, so that we can make next year that much better. Figure out what worked and what didn’t. Were you stretched too thin in your activities? Or, did you feel like you weren’t involved enough? Were you so busy that you didn’t have time for a meal with friends or a night out?
On May 7th, the remaining Emory students will complete their last finals and residence halls officially close for good. With seven weeks until the seventh, now is the time to start checking off the things we want to accomplish off our mental lists. Whether your list is seven things long or seventeen, make sure to live in the moment and live up these last seven weeks to the fullest.