Finding Comfort Past Anxiety

As much as I pride myself on being someone who enjoys school and loves learning, as far back as I can remember something has stressed me out more than anything: starting a new school year or semester. Stemming from not being a fan of change and just being more introverted, it has carried over to my college years as well. Stress over the new school year was particularly significant this past fall when I started in-person classes for the first time in my college career. 

Though all of my classes made me uncertain, there was one that made my stomach knot more than the others—Intro to Graphic Design. I truly dreaded starting the class because unlike with traditional art, I didn’t have a shred of experience in digital art, not even playing around in Photoshop. 

In the beginning, there were many moments when I struggled to grasp the steps needed and it was exhausting having to learn an entirely new art form while advancing in others. Eventually I caught on to the methods, but not without the help of the professor who teaches graphic design, Patch.

Patch could not have been kinder or more helpful as I progressed, and he celebrated alongside me as I went on. His dedication to his students and desire for us to succeed makes the environment welcoming and calm, and changed my entire perspective on graphic design.

While registering for spring classes, I chose two studio classes, an anatomy class, an AUC requirement class, and the continuing graphic design class following Intro to Graphic Design. When we switched over to the second semester, the familiar stress triggered by starting new classes returned. As these past few weeks have gone by and I have adjusted to my new schedule, I’ve found that graphic design has become my comfort class where I can relax and focus on my projects without fear of uncertainty. 

Knowing that if something had caused me stress before can now be a comfort, I was able to take a step back and embrace the uncertainty of new classes as new opportunities.