Jess Daninhirsch

My grandmother Gloria used to say, “This too shall pass.” I used to only say this when I was stuck in difficult times in my life where the only thing I could do was wait it out. But it’s come to my attention that the full phrase is “This too shall pass, for better or for worse.” Even the good things must come to an end.

We all have places where we don’t want to go, somewhere we don’t want to be early in the morning, day after day. It can be draining, and all we want is a change of pace. But nothing lasts forever, for better or for worse. Seven months ago I was stressed out of my mind trying to decide where to apply, let alone the stress of actually sending in applications. But now, crazy enough, I am a graduating senior who knows where I’m going to college and what I’m going to study. It all seemed to happen so fast. But looking back, I’ve been fortunate enough to experience so many wonderful school events, laughs with my friends, and moments that I will remember forever.

Mike Posner (yes, the singer) once told me, “This moment is real, and it is beautiful.” That became my mantra this year.

If you ever feel stressed, overwhelmed, and anxious, or even if you feel exuberant, joyful, and excited, I encourage you to stop. Take a deep breath. Look around at where you are in this exact moment and say to yourself, “This moment is real, and it is beautiful.” It helps to ground you to where you are.

Life is full of beautiful moments. But unfortunately, those moments are fleeting, so it’s important to recognize when moments are real when you are actually still in them. You’ll be able to remember them much better, and you’ll begin to recognize more moments– big or small–as beautiful and life affirming. So, my advice to all you loyal readers out there is to live in the moment. Oh, and thank you for reading The Uproar.