It’s that time of year again. The commercials and ads on our television and computer screens are a constant reminder. They fill our hearts with dread and our heads with anxiety. There is a hint of excitement and a promise to yourself that you will be better and more prepared and organized this time around. Conversely, you feel a heaviness in your heart. Your palms get sweaty. You think about all of the late nights and gratuitous amounts of coffee that will soon replace your blood. It’s almost time to go back to school.

Whether you are going back as a student or a teacher, such as myself, you fully grasp that “Sunday Blues” feeling. It’s that feeling of “it’s still the weekend, but you need to get ready for work or school.” Now, some of you non-students and teachers out there may scoff, “Students and teachers get plenty of time off during the summer.” This may be true to some extent considering most office jobs only grant a week’s vacation and some holidays sprinkled throughout the year. However, nothing compares to the month-long stress that August brings. May, June, and July seem short-lived compared to August, the longest month of the summer, and maybe even year!

When it comes to office jobs or any position that does not give the employee a lavish break from work (like a student or teacher), those employees get into a routine and know to buck up and get over those Sunday feelings. You only have 24 hours to get over it and get back to work. The teachers and the students, on the other hand, are given the entire month of August. An entire month of trying to enjoy that last trip to the beach you made with your friends on a whim, only to hear in the back of your mind, “You have to go back to school soon.” Those few words haunt you. You start to have night terrors of entering the classroom naked. You go from laughing to stoic in moments because it hits you how little time you have left and how much you need to do. Sure, you may have had a summer job, because how can you not afford to have that summer gig? But it’s entirely different entering the classroom once more as a student or teacher. Between buying your new supplies and ordering that $400 text book, of which your teacher only asks that you refer to it once, there simply is not enough time. The panic sets in.

Well, I am here to tell you that it will be okay. This “Sunday” will pass. You are going to rock it this year! You are going to buy Sharpies, new copybooks, lesson planners, pencils, and highlighters. You are going to soar and before you know it it will be time for fall and winter break. The year will fly by and you will have survived once more. Enjoy the rest of your summer. It may feel like the longest Sunday ever, but enjoy yourself and kill it this year in school!