As the workload of the spring semester of my final year of college starts to pick up, finding the opportunity to spend time with my friends is hard. Working multiple jobs (as many of my friends do) on top of a full course load has made it hard to make time for myself and for my friends. However, there is one day out of the year that my girl-gang and I look forward to: Galentine’s Day.
My friends and I began celebrating this event last year over a spaghetti squash dinner and the film “Lady Bird.” One of the most memorable parts of the evening was a cake from a local grocery store with hilariously misspelled frosting reading, “Ladies celebrating ladies.”
Our inspiration for the event originated from the show “Parks and Recreation.” On one episode the lead character, Leslie Knope, invites all of her female friends and coworkers out for brunch on Feb. 13, to exchange gifts and celebrate one another. “Ladies celebrating ladies” is the motto that Knope coins for the event, and what my female friends and I have made an annual celebration of friendship, love and appreciation.
This year, the torch was handed off to me to host Galentine’s Day. I prepared for the event as I would any typical night in: comfort food and romantic comedies. Included were some of the best episodes of “New Girl” and “Broad City” and the early 2000’s classic film “13 Going on 30.” For the first time in what felt like months, we were all able to gather together and remind ourselves how important it is to cherish the short time that we have left together before we go our separate ways.
As I prepare to graduate in May, I have found that it is easy to lose track of my relationships with others. I, like many of my classmates, feel the stress of a full course load and homework and struggle to find the time to step away from my responsibilities to maintain a social life. It’s easy to get sucked into the stress of our busy adult lives, but making the time for others is crucial to a well-balanced college experience.
I am lucky enough to have a group of supportive friends to lift me up when I am feeling uninspired, to help me through the rough patches, to remind me why I am here and to share successes with. In the wise words of Leslie Knope, “You know my code, hoes before bros. Uteruses before duderuses. Ovaries before brovaries.”
Whether or not you choose to celebrate Galentine’s Day, it’s important to make time for your friends. Grades are important, but I’ve learned that self-care is everything and the key ingredient in surviving your undergrad career. I am thankful for the strong women in my life and cherish every moment spent in their presence and look forward to celebrating their successes as we prepare to enter the workforce and officially become “adults,” whatever that really means.
