Students know that it’s easy to get all wrapped up in the stress of upcoming exams, and with finals just around the corner, in less than a month to be exact, most students will practice the ritual of many late-night cram sessions for last minute studying and/or writing term papers.
It’s not difficult to see why students are particularly stressed out this time of year, especially around Thanksgiving. However, Thanksgiving is a holiday where most people, even students, should focus their attention on what’s truly important and set aside the studying and/or writing this Thanksgiving.
This is all baloney! Not everyone knows what it means or takes to be a student, so here are some reasons why students should not be so thankful this holiday season:
1. Family and friends- the most typical response that most people feel still rings true. Here’s where it isn’t: yes, most family and friends are the closest and most reliable form of social networking, but sometimes they can make a person want to run as far away as they can from home. For students, family and friends are invaluable during finals, but an exception is made for those with PhDs in areas pertaining to the student’s education. Most family and friends want to play catch-up around holidays, but how about playing a new game of leave-me-the-heck-alone?
2. The opportunity to learn- school can be stressful and really time-consuming, but there’s a tremendous opportunity to learn. Every student has the privilege of endless learning. Most should be thankful for the scholarships, financial aid, and professors that helped pave the path to higher education, but why should students be so thankful for that? Scholarships were created to be hard to get, while financial aid has so many rules, for example, not granting money to students who has made education their career, and what about the professors? Yes, they’re good at what they do, but they’re the real reason why playing catch-up with family and friends are second to studying because they make up the finals and require term papers. It’s really shameful and that’s why students shouldn’t be thankful for scholarships, financial aid, or professors.
3. A place to live- it doesn’t really matter where you live, just as long as you have a place to live, heat and running water. These are little things that go unnoticed, but makes a big difference compared to the millions of people around the world who don’t have these simply luxuries. Here’s the thing, location and size does matter. You have to live far enough from family members and have enough space to put annoying visiting family members on the other side of the house. A tip for this holiday is to leave heaters off because students are stressed out from all the studying and the unwanted company. The last thing you want is a student who has become the holiday Grinch.
While students are preparing for their upcoming finals, remember the things they shouldn’t be so thankful for and try not to enjoy the turkey too much this Thanksgiving because the last thing students want, in a stressful time like this, are happy faces. Happy Holidays!
This article was featured in the Prospector Winter 2011 Print Edition.
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