The University of Arizona has endured more than its share of anguish this semester. The nursing shooting. The basketball ticket melee. Coach John Mackovic's fallout with the football team. And more impending budget cuts.

But for the next four days, the drama of the past few months and the typical end-of-the-semester panic will take a back seat to family, friends and food. It's a time to leave the cares of the university behind.

The UA has constantly been in the national spotlight in the past month, and for the wrong reasons.

The shooting deaths of three professors at the College of Nursing shook the Tucson community and became a global magnet for concern from families and friends of UA students, faculty and staff. Alumni were crushed to hear the breaking news coming from their alma mater. Our campus community was defined by death.

Hours before the shootings, students rushed to get basketball ticket vouchers. Pre-season No. 1 rankings incited many to do whatever it took to get seats. The local media deemed the crowd students a "mob" due to minor injuries it inflicted on trapped students trying to escape the rush.

Drama skipped from basketball to football when a teary-eyed Mackovic publicly apologized to his team for his abrasive behavior. Earlier that week, 41 football players met with President Pete Likins in an attempt to resolve conflicts between the students and the coach. In the sports world, our university became known for having a coach who "failed to meet his own standards."

And last week, to top it all off, Gov. Jane Dee Hull threatened the university with an $18 million budget cut for next year. Those of us who are not graduating can only fear the dent the cuts will place in our own academic programs.

It's been a rocky semester. But the next four days aren't the time to worry about it. Take a breather. You've worked hard this semester, so eat, drink and be lazy. Enjoy your family and friends. Relax.