It is essential that students have strategies to remain balanced while in school. We must not only discover what works best for us individually, but more importantly, we must implement those things into our routines. An essential strategy that personally keeps me balanced is going outside for an hour at the end of each day. Of course, I walk around the neighborhood. But for me, the most important aspect is to simply experience nature during the least structured part of my day.

In the past couple of weeks, the warmer temperatures and increased sunlight have made my daily walks more interesting. I see more people outside again, which is nice (Note: I did not see many people on my January walks). The sunsets have been absolutely gorgeous. I love how a warm glow is created and how its unique quality integrates into every tree and blade of grass. Nature is so majestic.

Recently, it was raining during the time my outside exploration would occur. I could have skipped my outdoor hour, but I had an especially high case of cabin fever from a very long day of studying. So, I put on some thicker clothes to soak up the rain and grabbed my umbrella!

I decided to explore more local sites so that I could quickly get back to campus if the rain picked up. In the middle of my walk, nature got interesting! Half of the sky was super dark and cloudy and the other half was sunny. It was a beautiful paradox to experience. Shortly after, I noticed a huge rainbow that expanded across the dark part of the sky. Then, it started to rain heavier even though the sun was shining. I saw tiny droplets of water hanging onto the smallest branches of each tree, magnifying the sunlight. I was completely awestruck by the beauty of nature in this moment. Everything that I was witnessing was because I had cabin fever!

As a result of the absolute magic of that outside hour, I was able to refocus myself for another day of school work. Spending unstructured time in nature is a strategy that personally keeps me feeling balanced during school. I recommend that you brainstorm what your “balancers” are and that you prioritize them in your schedule as a student. Nothing could be more important!