Life is a rollercoaster

Life is a rollercoaster. 

This week has made me realize how life is constantly a cycle of highs and lows but this week also made me realize how I’m not the only one on this rollercoaster. I started the week off feeling strong on Sunday evening. Sitting on the sofa in the common room, I stared at my english essay, thought about my physics test and I felt like I could conquer all my midterm assessments, four of which were on Friday. I felt a particular strength in my head, and an I can totally do this attitude pervaded through my body. 

This feeling of strength and happiness sustained all through Monday, but on Tuesday, the stress of physics hit me when I spent two hours on six homework problems. I went to Silent Study and sat there staring at my english essay, my french in-class essay, a math test, and my physics test. I remember trying to think about what each teacher expected of me, and I tried to stay positive. However it was difficult to stay positive when it felt like time slipped through of my fingers like grains of sand. 

By Wednesday night I was terribly stressed about physics as I had been unable to solve any problems without help. I had a math test the following the day which I felt underprepared for and in the midst of the stress and the frustration, I felt nothing but overwhelmed. It was the kind of night where I believed every second of the night counted and that what I did with every minute would make an impact on my performance and wellbeing the following day.

Friday night was my high of the week, as it habitually is. I took a walk downtown during the sunset after cross country, and all I could think to myself was, “wow, I made it”. I felt stronger than ever, and frankly, for a moment, I even thought I could conquer anything else that came at me after this week.  I went out to dinner with two of my friends, and we refrained from talking about exams. I think each of us wanted to clear our headspace from the long and stressful week. There was an evident sense of release and happiness amongst ourselves. I could see the glow in my friends’ eyes as we sat around the table, bonding over making it through the week and the scallion pancakes.

Andover is a special place for me: it builds an unique and tenacious character in each of its students. There’s a fire that burns in each of us on this campus that says, “I can do this.” I saw it in each of my friends this week, and it inspired me to feel similarly on Sunday night. But Andover in itself is a rollercoaster and that was a major theme for me this week. On nights that I felt down and overwhelmed, what motivated me to continue and push through was my belief that it would get better in the very near future.  

Life is a rollercoaster.