I heard a piece of dis-hearting information from a colleague and friend of mine a year below me who attends another Big 12 school that shall not be named. He and his girlfriend of two years had decided to part ways. I had met the two of them during my summer in Omaha back in 2013. They were quite the couple and it seemed they would never break up. However, after a recent disagreement on future plans, the two drifted apart. As emotional and personal matters can affect various aspects of our lives, many times the first area of impact for us students is our academic focus and schooling. For my friend, in light of the sorrows he is feeling and its toll on his grades, he is debating on whether or not to take another semester, delaying his graduation date. However, knowing how capable of a comeback he is, he shouldn't.

Indeed we all know life is not linear. No matter how much our computational and mathematical trained minds try to force it to be. Yet life is a function! You really do get out what you put in. Sometimes it can be linear, quadratic, or even exponential! Of course, it can always be randomized for you probability lovers out there—no matter how cheesy that sounds. Like my friend up North, I recall moments through my time here at this fine university where I have felt that the whole world has fallen around me and I had no idea what the next step was. Whether it be a personal issue or a goal not met, I came to realize what ever I was concerned about the issue was really minute in the grand scheme of life. While there was always another quiz, test, girl, job interview, etc. one thing that certain: time keeps going on.

My fellow blogger, Rohan Ramchand touched on this issue from his perspective very beautifully this week as well. However, I would like to continue from a personal spin with an attitude to just forget about it , to just keep swimming , and to not worry about those raindrops that keep fallin' on your head. I have found that with this attitude, the "blues sent to meet me, won't defeat me" and that I really can't "stop the rain" by complaining  (Can you tell I like BJ Thomas?). So maybe take a walk to remember, or just buckle down on your studies. By moving forward and setting new expectations, your trek toward the holidays will be a lot nicer. There is still time in the semester to rebound and finish up. If you let your personal obstacles get in the way, they will win. Don't let them. It's very easy to get ahead of ourselves in light of the upcoming holidays with the anticipation of spending time with family, seeing old friends, and savoring mom's good ole' home cooking. However, it is important to not get ahead of ourselves and rush the end the of the semester through. Once finals are done, there'll time enough for counting when the dealing's done.

Since the development of this post I have received an update on my friend's status of his academic pursuits. Despite his personal obstacles, he is adamant over finishing up his degree on time. With that news and the knowledge of how hard life has hit him, I think it really is true that anything is possible. Hence, if you're feeling the November blues, get rid of them! Don't let anyone or anything break your stride, or tell you that you can't do something. After all, you can never underestimate the heart of a champion (or a programmer for that matter). So let's finish the semester and just keep swimming forward!