It’s the middle of March now, spring approaches us and so does the Easter break! As the sun starts peaking through the clouds in the afternoons here in Guildford, I can feel the overall spirit of the campus and the town shift. People are starting to sit by the campus lake for longer, go out for brunch more often and go on longer walks around town with their friends. Although it still gets cold at night and the sun isn’t always as warm as it can be, it’s nice to be able to go on walks where the slight heat is hitting your face. Coming from an African country, I am of course so used to the sun, it has been there all my life, even in winter it would come out in the afternoons. It was only when I moved to England that I started having a newly found appreciation for the heat and the sunlight piercing my eyes from the end of a street.

With the sun coming out a little more often now, it’s starting to feel not only physically warm, but also uplifting to the overall morale. This comes at a time that is much needed. We’re nearing the end of the semester, a time that can be a sentimental one for different people. Some are making summer plans, some are waiting patiently – or impatiently – for this academic year to end so the next one can start, and some are in their final semester here. Right now it’s also Ramadan, and spending a month which has always centred around community for me, away from home, has been hard. It does get slightly easier each year, but the feeling of missing a community you grew up in doesn’t really have an expiration date. As cliche as it sounds though, spring does bring hope. The slight heat and increased sunlight gives people a pep in their step which can really be felt around the town. It also brings a feeling from home a little closer as the sun finally starts shining again. 

Being in mid March also means now’s the time to look for internships, summer jobs, and graduate jobs, all very fulfilling things, if a bit daunting. It also means midterms, which I’d like to think I’ve mastered at this point. Then Easter break, where the sun will hopefully shine even more and people will get to travel for a couple of weeks. And then we’ll be in mid April and before you know it, I’m going to be handing in my dissertation. This is a bit scary if I’m honest, but I guess stress is normal when you’re in your final year of university. As opportunities and responsibilities start to increase in March and April, so does the pace of it all. Especially as this is my final year of university, I try to savour every moment of it, and I hope you do too, no matter which stage you’re at in the university process – even if you’re still starting out in September. I hope you have a warm Easter, a hopeful spring, and a homely Eid if you celebrate.