With the holiday season engulfing us, I feel compelled (as usual) to offer my tips for survival.

• Get off your cell phones. Walk to class and actually smile and exchange “hellos” with fellow students and faculty along the way. Tell your parents, friends and significant others that your phone is not the focus of your existence. With finals approaching, talking on your cell phone should be at the bottom of your priority list.

• Look around you. Kick the fallen leaves and enjoy their crackling sounds. See how powerfully blue the sky is on clear days. Enjoy the shirt-sleeve weather we’re having this week. It won’t last long.

• Make copious lists – one for school, one for social activities, one for holiday goals, etc. You get the drift. Life without a list is like a traveler without a map. You might get there from here, but an equal chance exists that you will get lost instead.

• Follow your lists. We all get overwhelmed at the end of each semester, so keeping track of what we’ve marked off our lists can make us feel better – really.

• Don’t worry about what you can’t control. Breathe deeply and repeat after me: “This too shall pass.” It may feel like a kidney stone at the time, but every crisis eventually will pass.

• Come back to school with a renewed dedication to knowledge. Note that I said “knowledge,” not “grades.” Knowledge, and what you do with it, is the real power. Embrace it.

Happy holidays, y’all.