Welcome back from break! I hope your first week back was at least a little enjoyable and not too painful. Yeah, it kind of sucks being back in chilly, cow-land Storrs but at least the sun has been out (although, it is nowhere near the heat of tropical sun which I would love right about now).
Last week I talked about taking a break to make yourself feel in control again. I’m going to be completely honest: I did not do that at all.
Break started off wonderfully! From Thursday until Sunday, I was hanging out with some of my favorite people at UConn. Everything was absolutely grand until I started feeling super sick. I was very congested and took Mucinex all week, which basically knocks you out. So, from Monday to Friday, I did not do anything too productive. I spent time with my family while breathing through one nostril and watched a lot of “The Office.” I literally did zero work, with the exception of one assignment that I did on my phone, in bed, right when I woke up. Oh, that being said, I basically spent all morning in bed. I really don’t think I had breakfast before 12:30 p.m. that entire week.
Now that I’m back on campus, I’m realizing how much I f*cked up by not actually doing what I needed to. I am much more behind than I’d like to be. I messed up, and pretty badly, so now what?
Listen, it is fine to take a break and not do anything. I mean, I can’t say that I regret letting my body rest and coming to school not as sick, or that I regret spending a lot of time with my family. In fact, I might have felt a little guilty if I didn’t do the second one that much. Right now, I’m remembering that I am wasting more time worrying about the mistake I made instead of turning that energy into hard work to catch up and get back on my feet. That applies for any mental break you take. Life is all about balance; you can’t go on forever without letting your mind rest or skipping things you love but you can’t go on without fulfilling responsibilities. I have been reminding myself that this week I need to catch up and complete assignments due to recover from not doing work the week prior. Regardless, I will be spending a whole lot of time in the library this weekend.
If you actually were productive over break, congratulations! Must be nice. Keep it up! Just about six weeks left, you can keep going strong.
On the other hand, if you’re like me and also did no work, hop back on your feet and work harder than ever! There’s just six weeks left and they are going to fly by. Use every chance you get to be productive. That was all a big reminder for myself, can’t even lie.
Carry your spring break energy into the rest of the semester, and keep smiling!
Armana Islam is a campus correspondent for The Daily Campus and can be reached via email at armana.islam@uconn.edu.
