Between these walls lie hope
Countless nights spent studying for English exams
Hoping to gather enough knowledge to pass
Flipping through barely legible notes
Dozens of pages of them
They make no sense
Yet I presume
Trying to cramp complex information into my memory

Dreams set forth of attaining a piece of paper with ones name become
More visible as each class passes by
I can taste success in my glands
It is sweet and savory
It is attainable

I hit the snooze on my alarm clock just past sunrise
Yawing from sleep deprivation
Then jumping out of bed realizing I’m late to class
I pour my hot coffee into a cup
Throw on my pants
And button my shirt too
Then run into my car
Off I go to school once more

Sitting through long lectures trying to seem attentive
It is a daily struggle
In the back of my mind
All I can think of is
Sleep, Sleep, Sleep!
I am walking zombie among my classmates
I resume my note-taking

I reminisce on
How far I’ve come and
How close I am from finishing
I can see the finish line from afar
What was once a distant destination is no longer
Closer than ever
These four walls hold promise
They breathe life

They hold the future
It is a place where brilliant minds come together
Students and professors
We are reminded by them we are close.
Sharing the same objective at hand
For some this is more of a struggle than others
We carry on persistently
Knowing these walls give us the strength we need

At last!
The glorious day is here!
Walking the down the aisle
With the rest of my class
All wearing caps and gowns that signify
We made it
I hear my name called among my peers!
Joy overtakes my body
I go up the stairs for my degree
One hand on it and waving at the crowd with the other
I hold a smile as big as my mouth can allow me to hold
Smiling back at mom and dad
Those restless nights finally paid off
Studying
It was all worth it!