Kiki R
Photo Courtesy of Kiki Rosen
If you’re reading this, remember to take it one day at a time.
Somewhere between planning for the future and trying to hold onto the present, I realized how loud life has become. Senior year feels like a countdown to graduation, to adulthood, to decisions that are supposed to shape the rest of my life. And in the middle of all that pressure, there’s one phrase that helps me cope: “One day at a time.”
My mom was the first to say it to me. Not as some dramatic life lesson, but softly, in moments when she could tell I was carrying more than I knew how to hold. “One day at a time,” she would say, as if it were the simplest truth in the world. And maybe it is. It’s not about ignoring the future; it’s about trusting that you don’t have to live all of it at once.
To me, it means that I don’t have to have my whole future figured out today. I don’t need to solve every problem, meet every expectation, or have a flawless plan for the rest of my life. I only need to show up for this moment: this class, this conversation, this minute.
There have been mornings when getting out of bed felt like a victory, where the weight of everything ahead felt impossible. But when I remind myself, “one day at a time,” it gives me the permission to just be human. It reminds me that rest is not a distraction from success, it’s part of it. That taking a walk across campus, laughing with friends, or letting myself cry is not a sign of weakness, but proof that I’m still here, still trying.
As a senior, it’s easy to feel like time is slipping away, like I should be doing more, experiencing more, being more. But this mantra grounds me. It tells me that today is enough. That I am enough, even if I don’t have it all figured out yet.
So if you’re feeling overwhelmed too, take a deep breath. You don’t have to carry tomorrow yet. Just be here, one day at a time.
Kiki R., Wake Forest University
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