Recently I missed a deadline, an important deadline. It was the deadline for honors society applications, due at exactly 3:00 p.m. last Monday. I had the application and paperwork all ready; my error was that I forgot to turn it in before 3:00, and arrived at 4:00, which was, of course, too late. Well, time waits for no one, as they say.

To put it bluntly, it was a huge disappointment and shock for me, and one that continued to echo. Over the course of the next week, starting from that missed deadline, things continued to pile up; a biology test, followed by another biology test — that one a take-home test that consumed most of the evening. I also have to read a 600-page book by the end of the week (tomorrow!), which, at the time of this writing, I am only halfway finished with. And, well, just for good measure, I missed another deadline, this one in my U.S. history class, for a paragraph which had been assigned for more than a week but had completely fallen through the cracks.

Now, I have been told that I am a responsible student (and I’m sure that my friends would revolt if I attempted to say otherwise), but I am now finding this hard to believe looking at the past week. Today, my goal in school was simply to get through the day without any more major gaffes. I succeeded, but it was little consolation.

So currently I’m in the process of cheering myself up, as the week isn’t over yet (though that idea seems unimaginable to me). And to this end, there are a few things that I find helpful to remember and repeat:

• You’re not alone. Friends are always there to be supportive during your downswings, and they always have a few kind words to say.
• Everyone makes mistakes. Especially when we have as much being thrown at us at one time as we do, it’s inevitable that something will eventually fall through when we’re not watching. That doesn’t mean we’re irresponsible people; it only means that we’re human. That one mistake doesn’t reflect as poorly as you might think.
• There’s always a way out. My teacher was kind enough to allow me one extra day to complete that paragraph (which I now have) with only a small deduction. I also have an opportunity to reapply to the honor society this fall. Of course it doesn’t totally erase the disappointment of the present, but it does prove that we never truly reach a dead end.
• Dwelling on something for too long will only drag it out longer. That’s not to say, don’t reflect; that’s an essential element to the whole lifelong learning process. Moods tend to snowball; I was in a poor mood at the beginning of the week, and I only found myself less prepared for the workload for the rest of that week. I’ve decided, just like I said before, that the past is past, and once we’ve learned our lessons, it’s time to move on.
• It helps to take your mind completely off the stress, at least briefly. This afternoon, I’ve been alternating between doing schoolwork — something that I must do, of course — and writing a few snippets of fiction — something that I enjoy doing and that relaxes me.
• Life works in cycles. We will always have our ups and downs; it’s important to relish those ups, and not to let the downs get us too much. Just remember that things don’t stay gloomy forever. Soon enough, things will be on the upswing again.

At the very beginning of the year, I resolved to keep a positive outlook; it was exactly situations like these I had in mind when making that resolution. We can’t be perfect, maybe, but we’re all good students; our occasional mistakes don’t change that fact.

As for me … well, it’s back to my book. A good night’s sleep can always wait for Friday.