What’s scarier than a horror movie? I’d argue that it is the realization that it is 9PM on a Sunday, and you haven’t checked Moodle the entire weekend. Suddenly, the pile of readings and discussion posts you’ve ignored since Thursday feels impossible to tackle and no amount of energy drinks or lattes is going to make it any better. 

On campus, it looks a little different for everyone, but the feeling is the same. You’ll spot it in the library or the Cove, where students are rushing to finish assignments they swore they’d start days ago. You can see it in dorms, where roommates suddenly become expert cleaners and do their laundry in the name of productive procrastination. And then of course there are the students, (guilty as charged) who scroll endlessly on their phones or watch TV with the mindset, one more TikTok or just one more episode of Modern Family. Until suddenly it’s midnight and you’re calculating how little sleep you can survive on. 

There are a few unicorns amongst us who treat this day as a reset.  Olivia Turner (27’)  swears by romanticizing her Sundays by planning out her week, and doing a bit of self care like tanning.  But for every Olivia there are at least five of us battling intrusive ideas such as: “Should I just drop out?” or “What if I start my essay and finish the rest in one of my other classes?” The spiral is real and the procrastination becomes even real-er. 

So why do Sundays feel so heavy? Is it the homework load that we put off? Is it having to shift gears from being relaxed to a week of classes and practices?  Or does it hit a certain time on a Sunday evening where you have to hold yourself back from texting your ex situationship “Hey, new week, new us??” Who knows…

What I can tell you as a junior who has been through countless Sunday Scaries is that it never fully goes away. It is a rite of passage in college, but perhaps finding small ways to soften the blow can turn Sunday into more of a restart button than a panic one. For instance, take a lap around campus and let the fresh air remind you that the world is bigger than your Moodle dashboard. Perhaps go look for one of our furry friends such as the Campus Cats who look more put together than most of us going to class or of course the families of foxes that like to wander around campus. Even a small thing like calling or texting someone can make Sunday feel less like a countdown to doom. But let’s be clear, if you are texting that ex-situationship that can’t seem to commit but texts you they’re in love with you without putting in any effort, it’s doomsday my friend. In honor of it being Hispanic Heritage month and for my Book of Life audience, let’s find our Manolo in a world of Joaquin’s. In all seriousness, just remember no matter how scary Sundays can get, Monday (and that situationship) will always still be the real villain.