Keep Calm and Carry On?

I’m a born-and-bred Minnesotan and, I think, we sort of embody persistence. Hardened by the harsh winters of our native state, Minnesotans tend to be roll-your-sleeves-up-and-get-to-work doers. We’re generally not very good at sitting still—you’d freeze! I have friends and family for whom what they perceive as inactivity equals missed opportunity. Being busy is a sign of a good life, an engaged and productive life; anything else is waste. The problem with that, however, is that sometimes you just need to stop what you’re doing and rest; it’s essential. When we’re at our busiest, when chaos is building and storms are erupting around us, the hard reality is that we need rest more than ever, even if it seems impossible to step away from the cacophony around us. 

For those of us who work with student loan borrowers, the last few years have been incredibly busy. Over the last four, in particular, there’s been a torrent of activity with fixes to income-driven repayment (IDR), Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), national forbearances, legal challenges, and more. One saving grace of this flurry of activity has been that it has all felt like progress—huge progress!—so the busyness has been both productive and rewarding. With the results of the recent presidential election, however, many have major anxiety about what may or may not be coming next for student loans. Could all of this busyness have been for nothing? Will all this progress go to waste?

Keep Calm and Rest.

When the storm clouds gather, it can be hard to see how you’re going to keep moving forward, how we’re going to make it through this unscathed. As a Minnesotan, my natural response is to start getting ready: dig out my thick wool socks; get the shovels out of the shed; make sure the snowblower’s working; stockpile gloves, hats, and mittens for when the grandkids forget or lose them. I’m grateful that I have experience to draw on for what I need to do for these frigid winters, but when it comes to what to expect for the next four years, I’m at a loss. My roll-your-sleeves-up-and-get-to-work inner voice says, “get ready!” But when I step back and let myself breathe, I realize that the best thing to do—for now, at least—is rest. Stay calm and rest.

There will be a time, soon, when there will be work to be done. But for now, there’s nothing we can do but stockpile patience. I try to remember that just four years ago, none of this huge progress had happened, millions of borrowers hadn’t received PSLF, and we were anxious to see what changes could be coming following the recent presidential election. If all of this can happen in just four years, we can trust that somehow the student loan situation always corrects itself. But what to do in the meantime? For me, that means enjoying these last waning days of autumn before the first winds of winter come in earnest. When they come, I’ll be ready with my shovel and snow boots, but—for now—I’m going to enjoy this opportunity to rest and keep in touch.