With the semester winding down, most of us are finding the final homework assignments, papers, projects, reports, quizzes, in-class writing assignments raining down on us, all at the same time, until we take our finals.
Unless, of course, you decide to take a load of humanities classes; English, in particular, let's say. Take my spot for a second. Well, in that case, you'd have no final exams, but that doesn't mean much. You have to turn in final essays, final portfolios, final research papers, final projects, all of which must demonstrate semester-long revision. You can't just “make something up” to fill up the page requirements, either, because the professors have, as I've come to learn, very, very critical eyes when it comes to the end of the term. You can't just “write something” because you ran out of things to say because some professors keep a copy of each draft you turn in, and your grade in the class depends on how much you've revised and crafted the drafts into better pieces of writing.
So I'm panicking a little bit, since I finish on the 14th. Lucky me, right? Yes and no. Yes, I'm officially done with my courses earlier than most people. Yes, my only exam is Psych, and that's on the 13th (which, by the way, is before the reading days, but I'm glad it's not on the 23rd, which was the original exam date). But then again, that means I have 10 days (and counting down) to write, write, write: my Expos research paper, which has to be 10-15 pages long; my World Lit final paper analyzing themes across cultures and texts we've studied, my Knowledge & Power interview project/essay, which is another 7-10 pages on my interview with a Douglass alum and how her life relates to issues that she faces as a woman in science; my greater-than-8-page-portfolio for Creative Writing that will incorporate at least 4 pages of a short story and at least 4 pages of poems. Oh yeah, and my Knowledge & Power interview presentation on Monday.
The lesson? It won't be easy being an English major, but despite the work (piling up), the pressure (growing exponentially, with every day bringing me closer to deadlines), and other challenges, I'm convinced it's what I love. I once heard that when you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life. Yes, there are obstacles I will face every time I sit down to write a paper, but the difficulties hold much less weight simply because I enjoy writing and reading and everything else I have to do. Which reminds me, I'd better get working!
All the best on finals, everyone!
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