Just Breathe by Anna

Just Breathe by Anna - May 2016 Scholarship Essay

Amidst the hustle and bustle of the dreaded finals’ week, students suffocate themselves by attempting to swallow every last bit of information they can possibly obtain. However, students often forget that life does go on outside the abyss of final exams - life outside of school facilities, high school curriculum, and eventually college. So despite students’ inevitable urge to drown in their own tears, the best medicine and study method they will encounter, as I have, is what allows life itself: breath.
Although it is easy to preach about the necessity of breathing, I would be the ultimate hypocrite if I ignored my anxious condition before every exam. Too often this anxiety has caused irrational thoughts that provide a blockade against my potential success. For example, during most tests I question my knowledge on most of the subject matter. In turn, I receive my graded test knowing that I originally had the correct answer but did not trust myself enough to select it. Recently, however, I have come to terms with myself that no person shines as perfectly as brand new crystal. Instead I embrace all the good and bad entwined within my flesh because my performance capabilities only extend as far as I allow them to. There have been too many sleepless nights without dreams of my Hollywood crush; too many weekday evenings without a bath in the radiance of the sunset; too many moments passed without a chance of return. Consequently, deprivation became my norm. Today I have demolished my blockade against success by simply living. During the ultimate climax of stress, I just breathe. I take the time to inhale for four counts and exhale for three. Most importantly I dedicate myself to the thoughts of what I have accomplished and, better yet, what I will accomplish.
Needless to say, I am nothing above the typical fish in the sea. With that being said, I know that we are our own worst enemies. We psych ourselves out by only pondering on the “what if’s” that our subconscious offers. However, if you erect your armor against the void of fear, you will certainly earn your badge of confidence. In other words, take a step back, inhale and exhale, reboot, and remind yourself that it can be done.