The stressful challenges I faced during my undergrad were more manageable when I worked alongside my friends.  I remember one Saturday morning when we were studying in the library.  We were preparing for an organic chemistry (o-chem) exam on Monday and a general biology exam on Tuesday.  Due to a physics exam we had the day before, we had pretty much just begun preparing for these two upcoming exams.    

I was listing all the topics our tests would cover and when I finished the list for o-chem, I closed my eyes and began massaging my temples.  I fully realized the immense volume of work that lied ahead.  I opened my eyes to check what my friends were doing.  One was sitting in front of me, across the library table;  he was reviewing one of our old quizzes.  Within a few seconds, he looked up at me.  His eyes were wide-open and his mouth shut tight.  We recognized in the other’s face how overwhelmed we likely looked.  We both started chuckling and gave the other a singular nod of encouragement.  He returned to his quiz, and I to the first topic on my list.  

The seventy-two hours that followed felt like a marathon.  Each day we staggered from the library at 3 am and dragged ourselves back at 8 to resume studying.  We had coffee runs and food runs.  We kept each other off Facebook and YouTube.  We assisted each other if one of us got stuck on a question.  For the questions that none of us knew, we took turns emailing our professor for help.  We were nearing the end of our rope, but before we knew it, it was Tuesday and we were handing in our biology test; we made it!

A week later, our tests were graded, and we each received A’s on our exams.  I felt overwhelmed that Saturday morning; however, having my friends working alongside me helped me focus and gave me the determination to give our undertaking everything I had.