My freshman year was over and it was time to enjoy the summer. I was happy with how I finished the end of the semester, so I felt more comfortable relaxing for the next three and a half months. I had a lot planned for my summer, which involved working and working. I was happy to be back at the retirement home and away from doing homework and studying.
Once the summer was over, I was feeling the best about myself than I have in a while. I went to cross country preseason, even though I wasn’t able to run. I was just content being around my teammates and walking on the beautiful trails that they ran on. It was a week full of social activity, naps and mall trips. As excited as I was for my classes to start, it felt they were never going to. I was enjoying my social life way more now that I didn’t think I would ever have the realization that I was still in college and my classes were going to pick up quickly.
I never took anatomy in high school, so I was most nervous for that class. We started taking notes on the first day and I was so annoyed. I kept saying how it was syllabus week and we shouldn’t be learning yet. I half-assed my note taking and went back to being with my friends. I did this throughout the first two weeks. I still
had a couple of core classes I had to complete, so I was taking those knowing they would be easy A’s.
In my anatomy class, my professor warned us that the first exam would be taken earlier than usual. She explained how she likes to get the exams out of the way so by the end of the semester, it will be lighter work while other classes were cramming the work. I knew this from the beginning, yet I didn’t take the initiative to go to the library as I did last year, or even reread my notes every day. I just kept my social life as my first priority because I was so glad to be back at school in the first place.
The first exam came around quicker than I realized and I was more than underprepared. To “study,” I read over my notes maybe twice. I studied an hour before the exam. I thought I could do it, but my brain does not work well under pressure. I ended up doing terrible on the exam, which was a wake-up call for me. I feel strongly about my grades and I enjoy working hard and having it pay off. This was embarrassing to me and I immediately checked myself. I needed to snap out of it and realize I was back into classes and I needed to focus. I needed to be back to disciplining myself for my studies.
Right after I saw my exam, I wrote down every question I got wrong. I walked right to the library and started writing my notes on my own instead of in class. I went back into my strong habits from last year and got myself back on track. I felt like I was working hard and it was paying off. My FaceTime calls with my parents were much more positive now. It was good that I was back to being my college self instead of my summer self.
My second anatomy exam showed the difference between the distracted Morgan and the focused Morgan. I finally was improving and I stopped letting my mind and social life get in the way. My time management skills were back in effect and I was able to balance everything again. I was so scared of being a part of the sophomore slump, that I didn’t let it happen. I stayed self-aware and caught myself when my grades started to slip. I was lucky with this because some people can’t fix their grades once they start going downhill. It’s important to pay attention and notice when you aren’t feeling like yourself and becoming too carefree in school.
