Doing one thing at a time bores me, it leaves me empty and hollow, it’s like I’m missing something. That’s why I like to juggle. Working as a teacher part-time? Let me do a research project on the side. Oh, and volunteer here and there and work on a creative project because my hands need something to work on. And obviously I need to meet up with friends, do some archery and… OH NO! That deadline is tomorrow? Guess I’ll get right to it! There’s just a thrill to constantly shifting your focus, it takes the monotony out of your day while keeping the rhythmic beat of life steady.

And so I keep the proverbial balls up in the air. I need at least three; anything less kills my soul, but too much and I’ll burn up. There’s a fine line between the dullness of one and the sheer panic of twenty, which makes finding a balance key. Besides, some balls are the size of a skippy ball whereas others are like tennis balls or even as small as marbles. Bigger balls take more effort and a slippery ball falls more easily than a rough one. When one ball suddenly starts growing, because it needs some more attention at that time, another ball might drop to the ground all of a sudden. And yes. You can consider my midterms and my lack of writing for the Student Blog as an example of such a ball dropping drama. The ball is back in the air and ready to fly though!

I also think juggling is an important part of student life. Most students have a job, their coursework, and one or even more societies and clubs to be a part of. As an international student, I am shocked by all the societies, sports clubs, and activities for students that you can find in Dundee. The first time I heard about DUSA and the Sport Union my head started spinning with all the opportunities and the choices to make, there is so much to do! When I studied in Amsterdam, student life wasn’t as filled with student societies and clubs as it is here, which makes for a nice bit of culture shock. I’m enjoying the exploration of all these new things though. Exploring your world can be a ball of it’s own, and a rather nice exciting and shiny one at that. But for now, I’ll gladly continue to juggle through this year, it’s feeling quite good so far.

I hope you, my fellow jugglers, are doing well too. Keep those balls in the air, but don’t forget to put them aside and take a breather when you need it!