All The People We Meet

by Grace Pappadellis ’29 on April 16, 2026

Opinion - Society

I was once told that throughout your entire life, you’re lucky if you have one solid, supportive, loyal friend. Just one. I agree that not all people are on the same wavelength when it comes to their true purpose in having friends. For example, some friends stick around only during the good times, to have a good time. Some friends see relationships for their transactional purposes and material worth, while others don’t care to deepen a connection. Nevertheless, all these friendships, all the people you surround yourself with at one juncture to another juncture; they are arguably just as important to your life as that one, seemingly perfect friend.

I believe the depth of a friendship, the notion that a specific friend is most dear to you, stems from the simple idea that two people know each other, well, very well, for a long period of time. They’ve witnessed the changes of one another, possible struggles, maybe harsh realities or drastic shifts, and they remain in support of each other regardless. Oftentimes, these relationships begin at a young age; you’ve attended the same elementary schools, your parents are long-time friends, you’ve played youth sports together, or maybe you just sporadically aligned, and from that point on, you’ve been important, perhaps integral to each other’s livelihood. I’ve developed friendships of this caliber, childhood friendships that feel irreplaceable, and although my best friend from home knows the absolute most about me, sees me in a light that other friends of mine wouldn’t be able to decipher, I still find these other friendships to be just as important to me. There’s much to gauge about friendships; you meet people at different times in your life, you have no control over these meetings, these refreshing reminders that people you love will always, ubiquitously exist.

As you indulge in your future and promise yourself that you will make the right decisions even if they don’t seem right at the time, you’re bound to meet people in a simultaneous, natural fashion. These people are your gifts; they are reminders that you are lucky to love even when love and new relationships aren’t your main focus. To simply compare all of your friends on a scale without considering such factors does a disservice to your true appreciation of all the people you meet.

Without the friends that I’ve met in college, there would be a gaping hole in my life, a void of loneliness begging to be filled by endless streams of shared laughter and stories passed across rooms, our blankets pulled up to our chins as we bear the winter months together—thank God. To endure the suffocating snowfall and cutthroat gusts of wind by ourselves would be too much to ask of a person. These relationships that have grown through new college experiences, shared excitement, nervousness, hesitancy, the bursting, blooming process of self-identifying in a new place. They seem impenetrable and not possibly replicated by any other relationship from the past.

I once had a teacher in high school who liked to give lectures on how to choose the career best fit for you, even though he was supposed to be teaching personal finance planning. Although he often talked in circles and went off on rambling, sometimes ludicrous tangents, I was enthralled by the messages he intended to send beneath all of the roundabout stories. He told stories about people, his family, his friends, and colleagues, as if they were a talisman for his successes. He spoke about people with honor and gratitude, but also shared wisdom about those you must be weary of. Hearing about his experiences in other countries, how he raised his daughters, and how he decided to be a math teacher instead of focusing on linguistics, made his class feel like not so much a requirement to fill, but an hour and a half of my school day to think more inquisitively and ask real questions about real people, people who matter in someone’s life, and don’t matter in mine. It helped me become more observant. I had this teacher for only half a year; he taught a large class, and he never knew my older brother when he was in high school, like some of my other teachers.. I rarely spoke to him one-on-one, and math was always my least favorite subject. Regardless, he left an impact on me and deepened my adoration for those who have helped me in my life, while also pushing me to pay close attention to those who have made more latent impacts.

Separate from your close friends, there are many people to meet who may leave implicit traces, quiet, meaningful words, reassuring expressions, or even mere glances that will leave an impact on your life. The people you run into at random, they may say the right thing at the right time, or even the last thing you want to hear, but it steers you in the right direction, it clears the path that was once obstructed. They are part of the collective, significant grouping of all the people we meet. Value their subtleties; they may enlighten you just as much as the person who knows you the best.

Just Keep Scrolling

by Maria Mantini ’26 on March 19, 2026

Opinion - Society

As I approach the end of college, the benefits of social media have become even more apparent. My mother graduated from Providence College in 1988, and while she remains in touch with her close friends to this day, it was measurably more difficult for them to keep track of each other. With no cell phones, email, or internet, they would receive an occasional letter or phone call to check in as everyone started their new careers and next steps. There are some members of her graduating class that she has only recently reconnected with on Facebook or at reunions.

On the other hand, most people in our generation have had access to social media since their early teen years. When opening up Instagram, I still have posts that will pop up from people I went to middle school with, or a post on someone’s story will prompt me to reach out to someone I haven’t spoken with in a few years. Gen Z is among the first to have connections that span from childhood to adulthood in this way.

Despite the benefits this connectivity offers, I often find myself going down the rabbit hole of entertaining content made by people I don’t know instead of looking at posts from friends. If I have 10 free minutes before heading to my next class, it is all too enticing to open up the Explore Page on Instagram and choose from a screen full of videos curated to my specific interests, all but a small amount of which are posted by people I do not know and do not follow.

Finding that most of my time online was eaten up by looking through posts that offered nothing more than 30 seconds of entertainment, I decided to give up my Explore Page for Lent. Maybe if I were unable to mindlessly click through videos, I would spend more time interacting with friends, both on and offline.

However, within the first few days of Lent, I realized that I did not miss my Explore Page, but not for the reason I had hoped. While I didn’t have the option to look over and click on the posts that I wanted, my feed was essentially offering me the same content; all I had to do was just keep scrolling. As I open the app now and take a look at my feed, out of the first 10 posts, three are accounts I follow, three are ads, and four are posts marked “suggested for you.” The category with the largest percentage of space in my feed is posts that Instagram deemed I might like, not anything that I am choosing to look at.

Of course, the rationale behind this discovery is simple: the more people see content they like, the more they keep scrolling, and the more they keep scrolling, the more space there is to sell to advertisers. Instagram makes the majority of its money by gathering engagement from its users, which is why it is free to make an account. I am sure most have heard of the algorithm used by social media companies to analyze your engagement with content and give you suggestions that will keep you scrolling. Everything, down to the order of the posts on your screen, is arranged intentionally to fuel engagement.

That is not to say that these algorithms are entirely bad. Suggested content has allowed users to discover new recipes, activities, and helpful accounts they would have never otherwise come across. When suggested content has become the vast majority of our feeds, though, I argue it is time to call it into question. While I do not claim to fully understand the way social media algorithms work, I can say for certain that these companies are taking into account the way you interact with their platform. Next time you look at your feed, consciously notice what you are being shown and make a choice about what you want to interact with. Trying to fully shape your feed is a losing battle, but every move you make online is a message to tech companies about what you want to see.

Ed Column

by Sarah McCall ’26 on March 19, 2026

Editor's Column

Hi Friars! I hope you all had a great spring break! I just got back from San Juan, Puerto Rico with eight of my friends. We spent our trip going to El Yunque National Forest, exploring Old San Juan, and enjoying time by the beach. It was a nice distraction from the real world.. However, just because I was able to sit on the beach for a few days does not mean the world stops. This concept is something that I have been struggling with for awhile. How can a person appropriately respond to global, national, and local tragedies while maintaining their own mental wellbeing and success in this world?

Last semester, after the shooting at Brown University, students at Providence College were distraught for a few days, yet the completion of a semester and the joy of holidays easily overtook these feelings and students moved on. I too went home, celebrated birthdays, holidays, and spent time with my family. Yet, some families had a completely different experience. They were in mourning of family members lost, still reeling from the pain caused by gun violence. This shooting was such a deep tragedy, yet members of the same community were able to move on after a few days.

I don’t fault those who moved on. Instead, I just aim to understand why that is. I believe a lot of it has to do with the consistency of events like this. I am not only referring to gun violence, but also actions taken by the federal government, global inequality, environmental tragedy, and global conflict. There is constant hardship in our communities, and it can be difficult to focus on every event and dedicate time and energy into mourning. For example, the morning after the shooting at Brown, I opened my phone to receive any updates that may have come overnight. However, instead of immediately seeing information about the shooting at Brown, all I saw was information about a shooting in Bondi Beach, Australia. There was no time to process one shooting before another became the top story, hours later. Not to mention how many other tragedies happened that night that couldn’t make the top story on the New York Times app.

It is deeply exhausting to engage with these tragedies due to their emotional toll and the consistency in which they occur. Therefore, I think it is important to recognize the need to maintain mental wellbeing. It is so easy to feel burnout and helplessness towards a situation. It can create complacency, always feeling worn down by the world. A consistent state of mourning does not allow for the time or ability to get up and make change. That is why I feel it is important to find this balance. Humans are tied together through community and happiness. Finding that for yourself will help you assist in ensuring its existence elsewhere.

Because I was able to feel authentic happiness exploring a new place with my friends, I want everyone else to experience that happiness. That, then, becomes my motivation for inciting change and working with my community to create a better world. Finding balance is hard, and I am still working on it, but I know it is mandatory for humanity’s sake.

Childhood is Going Out of Business

by Maria Mantini ’26 on February 27, 2026

Opinion - Society

Who could forget the rush of excitement? Once the sliding doors opened, every toy currently on the market was available to you. A seemingly infinite amount of aisles contained the newest Barbies, Legos, Hot Wheels, Crayola products, and everything from alarm clocks to giant stuffed animals inspired by the latest animated movie. The shelves loomed far larger than your four-foot frame and stretched far longer than the hallways of your house. There was no better phrase to hear when getting in the car than, “If you are good, you can pick out one thing at Toys “R” Us.”

With a 4 and almost 3-year-old cousin, these past few years have reintroduced me to the modern toy market. Family gatherings are spent helping put together Bluey puzzles on the floor and sorting through the cards for Candy Land. The joy they get from inventing games or opening a new toy reminds me of the excitement I felt as a kid. Don’t you remember when there was no better feeling than waking up on Christmas morning and no greater disappointment on your birthday than when the colorfully wrapped box turned out to be a new sweater?

While I am able to remember some childhood experiences through their eyes, there is one experience that we will unlikely share to the same degree: spending time in a toy store. While there are some that remain, the availability of online shopping has made many retailers obsolete. According to stories published by The New York Times and CNN, Toys “R” Us closed all of their stores in 2018 after filing for bankruptcy. Their formerly infamous presence as the place to find every toy has now been relegated to a corner of Macy’s.

Arrangements like this do not even come close to replacing what is lost, though. Toy stores are entire stores devoted to children and their interests. The wonder of seeing aisles filled with your favorite games and characters cannot be matched with five shelves of dolls and stuffed animals across from the perfume counter. Many stores like the Disney Store and the American Girl store also had interactive displays and decorations to further enhance the experience for young kids.

Toy stores were not only places for fun and exploration, they also created some memorable lessons. I can still remember when my kindergarten class raised money to buy toys for charity during the holidays. Instead of simply donating the money, our parents took us to the store and we all picked out things we thought other children would like. The ability to hand-pick the gifts and know they would end up with a child who otherwise would not have them provided a much more impactful lesson than looking at pictures on Amazon.

The changing landscape of the market is evident, however. In the past several years, I’ve seen the Toys “R” Us, Disney Store, and American Girl store I went to growing up close. It is disheartening to think that these places that held so many great childhood memories will not be there for younger generations to experience. While it is undeniable that online shopping offers measurable convenience, the unique assets of retail should not be ignored, especially when it comes to the experiences of children.

The Past That Never Happened

by Marcus Howley ’28 on February 27, 2026

Opinion - Society

This past week in Philadelphia, PA, a federal judge ordered the return of a plaque detailing the lives of slaves owned by George Washington. This plaque had been removed by the Trump administration under an executive order titled, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.” The title of the order alone raises serious concern about the actual objective of it, especially when issues of slavery, colonization, and discrimination have fallen straight into its crosshairs.

From the very beginning, the field of public history—that being the remembrance of the past through monuments, museums, memorials, signs, and other public-facing displays of history—has been an ideological battle zone. Organizations like the United Daughters of the Confederacy used the creation of monuments honoring Confederate generals and leaders to advance the myth of the Lost Cause after the Civil War and through Reconstruction and the rise of the Civil Rights Movement. The Lost Cause is the myth of the antebellum South as being all Southern belles and slavery as just lemonade picnics. In this context, the Civil War is framed as a Southern fight for states’ rights against an oppressive Northern aggressor. This myth obviously ignores the realities of the horrors of slavery and the politics that caused Southern secession.

The Lost Cause is relevant to today because the idea of reshaping the past through public memory is the exact objective of this executive order. The specific targeting of issues that pertain to race and discrimination suggests an attempt by the Trump administration to erase or cover up the darker elements of America’s past. The order states that it seeks to eliminate displays that “inappropriately disparage Americans past or living,” with the intention of emphasizing the “greatness of the achievements and progress of the American people.” The first half of the order on disparaging Americans past or present should bring about genuine concern. While figures such as Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and others are commemorated as national heroes, they are not infallible. If we want to understand the whole picture of who these people were, we need to include the ugly elements,like, for example, the plaque in Philadelphia detailing the lives of slaves under Washington. Our national heroes are not gods to be worshiped, but real people who deserve both praise and criticism.

The second segment on celebrating the achievements and progress of Americans will initially appear to make perfect sense. Many of our public history displays celebrate great progress made in American history, yet the actions of the current administration raise the question of what or whose progress we are celebrating. This is highlighted by the Trump administration’s removal of the LGBTQ+ pride flag from the Stonewall Monument, the monument celebrating the moment that jumpstarted the LGBTQ+ rights movement. The administration seems keen on not celebrating this kind of progress. The removal of signs about the exploitation and removal of Native Americans at Grand Canyon National Park shows what the actual progress being celebrated is. That progress is the idea of Manifest Destiny, the expansion and domination of white Christian Americans across the entire continent. Progress is not the hard-fought battles of civil or workers rights, but instead the mythical travels of horse drawn wagons into a supposed savage wilderness in need of Christian civilization. Progress is the rise of true domination and superiority of white America over the rest.

The very slogan of Trump’s campaigns shows this ideal. “Make America Great Again” implies the need for the country to go back to how things were in some other time: a time when America was supposedly great. A perfect past of white picket fences and the nuclear family. A time of peace and unity among all Americans, free of the division and so-called anti-patriotism of the modern day. This past very clearly did not happen and never existed. The real past, regardless of attempts to cover it up, still exists and still happened. You cannot change history, no matter how hard you try.

Organizations like The Heritage Foundation, Turning Point USA, and Prager U have all helped push this false mythical narrative of the past into education. Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff, even told reporters, “Children will be taught to love America. Children will be taught to be patriots.” Teaching history does not mean turning people into patriotic robots who dare not consider the wrongs of their country. It should instead encompass an understanding of the whole picture of what the country itself is, the highs and lows. To quote famed civil rights activist Frederick Douglass, “The life of the nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful and virtuous.” We must be honest as to what our history actually is, or we risk falling into ignorance of the lessons it teaches.

Ed Column

by Sarah McCall ’26 on February 12, 2026

Opinion

Happy February, Friars, and congratulations to the Patriots for losing the Super Bowl! I really enjoy watching the Super Bowl every year because it offers a high-intensity game (usually), an intricate musical performance, and interesting commercials. I also enjoy the Super Bowl because it brings people together. Friends and family gather in living rooms, bars, and basements all around the country for four hours, watching two of the best teams in the National Football League, making friendly bets ranging from who the Super Bowl winner will be to what color the Gatorade poured on the head coach will be. The Super Bowl brings out genuine and authentic community.

The Olympics bring out this community as well. People come together with intense pride and spirit for their country, watching the best athletes compete in the widest array of sporting events. Especially in a time where everything is divided, an authentic feeling of community is found less and less often. Both the Super Bowl and Winter Olympics happened this past weekend. In theory, it was a wonderful opportunity to feel pride for our country and its athletes. However, the tradition of community surrounding these two events has been overshadowed by the unrest happening in the United States. The selection of Bad Bunny as the halftime performer led to a counter-performance organized by Turning Point USA. A once unifying performance became divisive, limiting the positive impact of the Super Bowl on our community.

Additionally, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents were sent to Milan along with Team USA. Tension has grown exponentially in the U.S. surrounding ICE’s presence in cities domestically. Therefore, sending these agents abroad has only heightened this tension. It also makes it impossible for many Americans to enjoy the Olympics.

While I do find issue with blind pride in anything, including the U.S., I also find it dangerous to be extremely dismissive of America and American identity. There are countless aspects of American politics and culture that I find to be harmful. That does not mean that I do not find pride in living in America. The best way to appreciate this country, or any community you are in, is to recognize the flaws and determine how to remedy them. Under normal conditions, I appreciate this aspect of the Olympics and the Super Bowl. I can spend most of the year focused on what needs to change to make this country better, but while I am rooting for Team USA or the Philadelphia Eagles, I am able to be proud of the country I live in. That is the balance that I want again. The divisive and polarizing world we live in now is not a suitable environment for positive change. I am scared for the future, but I hope we will continue to find things that unite us over party lines, even if those things change.

Does 2026 Just Mean 2016?

by Grace Pappadellis ’29 on February 12, 2026

Opinion - Entertainment & Society

I am going to take a trite term and do my best to infuse it with some sort of comfortable nostalgia, but also with the notion that we must stay well-informed, vigilant, and understanding of society at all times. History repeats itself. It is repeating itself.

Sure, the New England Patriots were in the Super Bowl, and whether that was an exciting idea or a completely devastating fact for someone, it is reminiscent of 2016, when the Pats were on top, and New England families, like my own, were ecstatic and proud. Snow has been falling, similar to our childhood holidays, we are embracing fashion from the early 2010s, and young voices are prominent in the way 2016 had a sudden hankering for new types of internet culture and development of aesthetics. On the other hand, society is once again experiencing an increased amount of political polarization, and regardless of your level of privilege or conscious decision to engage or disengage, politics are affecting everyone. Changes that we were facing in 2016 felt monumental, and although a decade has passed and the country has undergone different structural changes, it seems we are in a very similar place—possibly living through the consequences of our previous political choices.

With that being said, although nostalgia is a wonderful feeling, and understanding the political and social state of society does not mean we have to collectively ignore the avenues for joy, we should acknowledge every event, every issue, and every accomplishment. We need to let go of the concept that joy, or political neutrality, rather, and being knowledgeable, empathetic, and proactive around topics we may be removed from, should not be mutually exclusive. To add my own essence of where I stand politically—remaining neutral won’t get us anywhere, and you can be a happy, well-rounded person while staying informed, advocating for those who cannot, and remembering that cutting yourself off from the real news, the real truth, will forever hinder your authentic understanding of the society you, yourself, live in.

2016 marked an enormous political divide. Social media was making a huge impact on society, creating new exposure to opinions, news, and all sorts of nuanced ideas. People were emboldened by such a polarized society, their interest in politics increasing, and although real human involvement is important to support a democracy, the politics circulating harbored heavy partisanship, hate, and a lack of consideration for different people living in this country. Today, in 2026, TikTok has become a main news source for people, in lieu of credible news stations, newspapers, and web articles. When having conversations about current events today, you’re more likely to hear a person, especially a young person, say, “Did you hear about x, y, and z? I saw a TikTok about it,” than referencing a news station. Thirty-second social media clips are accessible, easy to understand, and allow people to neglect their accountability to read and learn about what is really happening in the world. The inability to absorb credible news is leading to ignorance of the parallels between 2016 and 2026.

President Donald Trump built his 2016 campaign on building a wall to keep immigrants out of the country. Today, the Trump administration funds and defends Immigration and Customs Enforcement that actively terrorizes citizens of our country. Repetition is not a comfort when the repetition is detrimental to the livelihood of people living in the country, living in constant fear that they are subject to ICE’s brutal modes of operation. Ignoring these parallels and deeming the state of the country as “not our problem” sets us back not only to 2016, but to eras when voices of marginalized groups were considered invalid and meaningless.

As 2026 rolls on, we must stay keen on learning, so we can have an abundance of knowledge on the state of the country, knowledge that can never be taken away. Consuming credible news and listening to multiple sources makes us more credible people! Since history is repeating itself in many forms, we can appreciate our need to reminisce, but we can also appreciate our obligation to change. We need to plan our future so it can be different from our reality, and we can maneuver through every hardship and indefinite struggle with more intelligence, fortitude, and veracity. More than 2016. Even more than this moment in time.

Expressions of Garments

by Grace Pappadellis ’29 on December 11, 2025

Opinion

While putting away laundry, one of my closest girlfriends asked me a “would you rather” question that left me stumped. She carefully placed her shirt on a hanger in a much neater fashion than I ever do, and said, “Would you rather have no say in your style whatsoever and have someone choose your wardrobe for the rest of your life, or only own the same items forever and never shop for new clothes again?” I was flummoxed and disturbed to hear this question, and suddenly it felt like I had to answer as if my life depended on it.

I absolutely love clothes, fashion, and creating my own sense of style—not just because my mother was a fashion merchandising major in college—but because when I pair my clothes together, when the colors meld and mix and match, when my skirts flow and sweaters rest on my shoulders and my shoes have me skipping down the street, I feel like myself. Clothes are everything! They are direct manifestations of our self-expression. Regardless of the clothes that are available to us, however we place the pieces that we do have together, we are able to display our own sense of style.

Therefore, my answer to the question was suddenly unobstructed, and it all made sense. I could never allow someone to dictate my wardrobe, even if it meant wearing the same outfit every single day. Maybe I am particular with my clothing, or I have an avid interest in fashion, but the thought of having no jurisdiction over my outfits is terrifying to even suggest. Sure, I appreciate variety. I have the privilege of wearing different outfits based on my mood, based on what makes me most comfortable, and I am also able to shop around within reason. In fact, shopping for new clothes is a special thing—especially finding items that I know I’ll wear forever, and they’re unlike anything else.

However, I stay particular when it comes to picking out clothes. The idea of somebody creating my wardrobe not only violates my autonomy, but it also builds a wave of anxiety when imagining walking out of the house in a state of discomfort, helplessly dressed in clothes I hate the color of, or detest the fit of, or simply don’t feel like me. Maybe I’m being a little dramatic, or irrational, but I cannot emphasize enough the power I feel when everything just fits, when the clothing arrangement is effortless and complete. To be frank, there is no better feeling than slipping on the same pair of jeans, weathered, stretched, flawlessly forming to your body, without any hesitation or second thought. This goes for t-shirts with just the right amount of gap for your arms in the sleeves, tank tops with soft straps, denim shorts with slight discoloration, and sweaters that slouch and hang like lush leaves on a strong, sturdy tree.

To adorn outfits with accessories is a beautiful thing—accessories that mean something to you, represent something, reminding you of special parts of life. When my childhood best friend moved away for a spell of time, she gave me her old jewelry box, cherry wood, just the right size, and filled with jewelry that had once meant a lot to her, but she didn’t wear much anymore. I cherished every piece, heedlessly pairing them with all of my outfits at the end of middle school and early high school.

Sometimes I can’t help but wince when I look at old photos of what I once called “my style,” and what I deemed to be the most chic and effortless. Regardless of the quality of the outfit in my eyes today, at the time, the outfit felt great, felt like me, and I can never blame myself for wearing something that once made me feel so comfortable and fashionable.

There’s a noticeable tastefulness in finding the clothes that work best for you, and sticking with them. Sure, I rarely follow this rule—in fact, I prefer to alter my style, attempt to acquire multiple, and embrace variety. On the flip side, I love watching others build their style based on the clothes they find most interesting, creating their own personal patterns that are sometimes only perceptible to themselves. It’s an intimate, exclusive practice that I see as a key component for self-expression.

Rethink Overthinking

by Grace Pappadellis ’29 on October 23, 2025

Opinion

It is reasonable to surmise that there’s remote danger in thinking too much about everything—your own life, others’ lives, and the world around you. Whether you’ve almost drowned in the pool of overthinking or even just slightly struggled to come up for air, there is a common understanding that no one likes to think too much, even in situations when more thinking is due.

For skilled swimmers like myself, I often wade in the overthinking waters. Even as a kid, I worried about everything—do my Barbie dolls hate their outfits? How will I hire enough waitstaff for my backyard restaurant? Why won’t my dog talk back to me? Even though these worries were all rooted in imagination, there was still some level of realism there, some hints of empathy for others, intrigue, or a longing to grow up. Was my overthinking hurting me? Or, was it only helping me think deeper?

Every day, you are faced with an idea, a task, a problem, or an event that requires some effort or consideration. Your mind captures the moment, processes the information, and your brain has the wonderfully instinctive ability to create thoughts, thoughts with truthful, definitive opinions. This process is sacred to decision-making. Every action you take is based on a thought you designed yourself, trivial or significant. You should honor your thoughts—they hold truth in how you really feel about something! Who wouldn’t want these efforts to be thorough? Don’t we make our best, most evocative decisions when we’ve taken careful measures?

In a perfect world, thinking and feeling are not relative to one another. Thinking about a choice in a profound, developed way would not result in any sort of stress or lethargy. Why can’t this “perfect world” actually be the real world? You can take control, you can nurture your thoughts, your opinions, and let them mature and flourish. You can think deeply, ponder, and let yourself feel the discomfort of thinking so much. It doesn’t mean your world has to revolve around the discomfort. Overthinking doesn’t have to be negative—it can serve as enrichment for your patterns of thought.

There’s a sense of relief in realizing that something didn’t really matter as much as you imagined, and you were simply overthinking it. You take a long, drawn-out breath, and you can finally think clearly again; there’s less unnecessary traffic in the streets of your brain. Little do you know, the effort you exerted on thinking that much could’ve been the key to recognizing something completely new about yourself—something you wouldn’t have been able to discover without a little extra work. Maybe you were overthinking the result of a test you studied a lot for, or you were spiraling about the way you came across during a highly anticipated conversation with someone. Regardless of these outcomes, your efforts only increase the likelihood of your success, because overthinking only shows that you care.

Now, if you find that you’re tying yourself in knots as your mind whirls and reels, take a step back. You have way more jurisdiction over your mind than you think. You have the ability to ground yourself, step out of the stress, and release yourself from the reins of your troubles. Don’t let the concept of overthinking infiltrate any other sort of thinking. To think and care a lot is to learn, and to learn is to be a progressive, intelligent person.