'Tis the season of giving

Happy Friday!

It's Friday once again, readers! And I'm just going to say it. FINALLY. This week seemed long, and I'm glad it's over...for the most part. I hope everyone had a good week, and if they didn't, I hope you have a relaxing weekend. 

A quick update on my life. It's been stressful this past week, and next week and the following week will be the same way. But after my last final on Thursday, I will be officially done with the semester! THEN CHRISTMAS BREAK.

Here's the latest articles I've published on The Odyssey Online: 10 Things College Students Are Thankful For and Life Lessons In How The Grinch Stole Christmas.

Countdown until Christmas break: 14 days.

Onto today's post topic. There is a couple of things I wanted to talk about but with they sort of overlap so I will just combine them in one big monster post.

A past professor posted a status about one of her students receiving some terrible news and asking for prayers. This status made me stop to rethink my week. While I was on the struggle bus all week with allergies and stressing over projects and tests, this student received the worst news so close to Christmas. As college students nearing finals week, we often get caught up between studying, procrastinating, complaining about our finals, worrying and stressing over tests, and other things. And we forget that others around us are facing bigger challenges than a test or project. I'm not saying that's a bad thing; I know all too well of just trying to get myself through the days and not thinking about others and their struggles. 

This is the season of giving and being thankful. My mom always told me that classic line "it's better to give than to receive". As a wee child, I didn't understand it, but as I have grown over the years, I realize it's true. Giving someone a gift, whether it's homemade or bought from a store, and seeing their eyes light up because they are surprised and overcome with joy is one of the most amazing feelings, in my opinion. It's one of the reasons why I love giving people gifts because when I get the chance to make someone's day with something they really wanted or always wanted (and maybe couldn't afford to buy it) or something they need, I love when their eyes light up, they have a huge grin on their face, and generally look like they are on cloud nine. 

To tie back into the first paragraph, I have only recently understood that "it's better to give than to receive" doesn't only apply to physical items but also to non-tangible items like praying for someone who needs it or listening to someone vent if they had a bad day or giving someone a hug if they look like need one and so on. So instead of worrying about my problems, I will take the time to pray for anyone needs it, listen to anyone who needs a listening ear, and give anyone a hug who needs one.

Until next week,

Thought of the day