Three Steps to Studying

Streetlights zipped past hypnotically as my car hummed down a sparse freeway. Large buildings along the horizon glowed like the stars we couldn’t see because of light pollution. A faint aura pulsed from the skyline as if the city were saying “look at me!” in a flirtatious manner.

I sniffled. The vehicle was filled with the sweet smell of freshly washed fruits, and the smacking of lips beside me. Something rustled, then a blackberry was wordlessly shoved into my mouth. It tasted juicy, but…

Why was I here?

It was nine in the evening, during the weekend before finals. Under normal circumstances I’d be cramming down the entirety of my curriculum with an energy drink as the chaser. However, Seri unexpectedly called during my evening review, and ominously told me to pick her up without any explanation. When I pulled up, she was already waiting on her driveway in an oversized hoodie and sweats, her hair tied up in a ponytail. In her arms was-

Not a cup.

Not a bowl.

Not even a large, plastic, tupperware container.

It was a whole ass picnic basket in her lap, filled to the brim with chilled berries and grapes.

“So… what are we doing this for?” I gulped down the chewed berry. After I picked up Seri, she just directed me to the road and has been occupied with her fruits ever since. I was beyond confused.

“It’s my new study strategy!” she declared.

“Eating fruits?”

“Well, that’s a part of it.”

“I don’t understand.”

Seri clicked her tongue. “It’s a three step strategy to the perfect studying day! The first step is-”

“Fruits?” I asked incredulously. She really was coming up with a new study tip each week. I should be compiling a list of her sources. At this point, it’d be suspicious if I wasn’t sceptical about some of her claims.

“And veggies! Foods high in flavonoids help reduce brain fog. Here, have another one.”

I slurped up a few blackberries from her palm. Most of them were cool and sweet, but one of them was sour. The mix of flavours made me grimace.

“Ah-!” Seri gasped.
“Hmm?”

“Nothing. Your lips tickled.”

“Thanks,” I said. “I just moisturised them. So what are the next two steps?”

“Well, the first step is reducing brain fog. Other than fruits and veggies, you need to move around and drink water, since a big reason for brain fog is low blood pressure in your head.”

“Ooh!” I perked up. “We learned about this in nursing. Intracranial blood pressure?”

“Yeah! You need adequate cerebral perfusion to prevent brain fog.

“I should’ve gone to the gym today then…”

“Apparently fermented foods help too. I don’t know why though.”

“Nice. I had some yoghurt after dinner.”

The freeway’s speed limit dropped as the downtown buildings grew closer. I released the gas pedal to let the car cruise, and reassessed my situation. Seri was likely taking a study break and wanted to share some new study techniques before our last week of school. While I appreciated the gesture, I honestly wished I was at home instead. I was confident in passing, but our grades mattered since we were trying for a competitive pharmacy program.

“Should we go home now?” I asked. “I still need to do some practice questions, and you’re probably not done studying either.”

“I haven’t told you the last two steps yet!” Seri said. “And I’m actually done studying for the day.”

“Really?”

“Yeah! I’ve actually been studying way less, since my new strategy’s so effective.”

“How much less?”

“Four hours a day. Max.”

My jaw dropped. We used to do six hours of animedoro on Saturdays. “Please teach me your new ways.”

“Foolish child. I refuse, for thou hast doubted me.”

“Pleaaase,” I begged.

“Only if you buy me some strawberries.”

“Grocery stores are closed! But I can get you a cheeseburger.”

“Nope. Fruits only, until finals are over.”

“Ugh…” Fast food was always my guilty pleasure during exam season. I always used it as motivation for the end of each gruelling study session. “So what are the next two steps?”

“The next one is spaced repetition.”

“Ohh, so like using flashcards everyday?”

Seri gave a sideways thumbs up. “Kind of. The more you’re exposed to something, the better you remember it, right? So instead of taking new notes, I focus on reading through the material twice a day. There’s a kicker though.”

“What’s the catch?”

“You need to wait at least four hours in between each session, and make sure not to write any notes before bed.”

I scratched my jaw dubiously. “Isn’t that counterintuitive? Don’t you want to load information in your brain so it sticks when you sleep?”

Seri’s forehead wrinkled in thought. “Uh… the best way I can describe it is like your browser tabs. If you use a website, close it for a while, then revisit it again, it starts showing up in your search bar, right? Your computer remembers things that you revisit often.”

“Yeah, I get that. But why not take notes at night?”

“That’s like closing the tabs. When you write it out, you offload your memory. Ah!” Seri lit up. “It’s like the distraction stickies! When you write down something before you sleep, you get it off your mind. Kind of like how journals and diaries help people vent when they’re sad.”

“Ohh,” my mind began to piece together what she meant. “So wait, step one is eat fruits-”

“Reduce brain fog!”

“-and step two is never study twice in four hours?”

“You could put it that way.”

In that moment, my lips parted, and the tension in my shoulders dissipated. Something about her study tips roused a certain level of confidence in me. Maybe the late night motivation started kicking in a little early.

“That’s so easy,” I said. “We should wake up early tomorrow and study together again.”

“Yeah!”

I grinned. “Then we could spend the rest of the weekend playing around!”

“Yea- well, I guess…” Seri began fiddling with the trinket hanging on my rearview mirror. She leaned forwards and asked me quietly. “Do you have any ideas?”

“What?””

Seri hesitated before continuing. “Ideas for what to do this weekend,” she said slowly. “Like a movie or a concert.”

“I’m down for anything,” I heard her sigh in relief. That was weird. She was usually excited to make plans together. “If your new study strategy frees up time, then we should play around a bit.”

“Yeah! Stress reduces brain fog too.”

“So should we call it a day then?”

“Wait!” Seri halted. “Let’s uh, talk about plans first. Oh, there’s also one more step in the study strategy, so we’re not done talking yet.”

“Right. Tell me the last step then, if we wanna get up early tomorrow.”

She cleared her throat. “Well, you know how memory consolidation works best with repetition and sleep?”

“Yeah?”

“There’s actually one other thing that your brain prioritises while you’re sleeping.”

I cocked my head. “What’s that?”

Out of the corner of my eye, Seri smiled. “Processing your emotions,” she said.

“What does that mean?”

“Negative emotions are painful to process if you’re awake,” Seri explained. “That’s why your brain does a lot of that while you’re sleeping. So if you feel really bad, instead of memorising the things you studied, your brain will try to purge your bad thoughts first.”

“That’s probably why people sleep so much when they’re depressed,” I said. I remembered the time I cheered up Seri with a cheeseburger. Was that almost three weeks ago already?

“Ohh yeah, that’s probably why I slept so much after our midterm.”

“I was just thinking about that.”

“Anywho-” Seri said. She procured a banana from the depths of her picnic basket, and talked to me in a dramatised deep voice. “On a scale of one to ten, how are you feeling right now?”