Stressing from piles of homework? Feeling tired and out of energy? Waiting anxiously for the next school event? I’m no doctor, but here’s my diagnosis: it’s a Homecoming hangover.
Graphic by Carol Lei
Homecoming week is arguably the most exciting week of the school year. Each day, there is something going on: tug of war, cheer-offs, skits, the Friday rally and finally, the cherry on top, the Homecoming dance. In the moment, the euphoria of Homecoming week rages, and we forget the work and the week to come.
Over the years, teachers and students alike have begun planning for this week by moving tests and big projects and only assigning moderate amounts of homework using the excuse “it’s Homecoming week.” The consequence of overloading on Homecoming week is the piling workload of the following week: the hangover week.
Like a hangover, the next week is dreadful—packed with tests in nearly every class for many students. The stress and the work from Homecoming week are so backed up, it is like two weeks of school jammed into one.
And then the lack of excitement in the air the following Monday makes school seem even duller. Where is the music at lunch? Where are the soccer goal posts to hold the skit backdrops? What do I wear to school? Where is Homecoming?
It passed. Welcome to the Homecoming hangover.
