Don’t get me wrong, I’m not the most active person when it comes to Sundays. In fact, most of them consist of very lazy activity; I like to think that they’re well-deserved… a day in bed spent by watching movies and doing some self care, or debriefing the weekend with friends in pajamas at 3pm until I go to mass or have to study. These types of Sundays are my opportunity to reset after a very busy and structured week, and they sure do a good job at that. However, my last Sunday has changed my perspective on them for good.
I did not expect anything different from this particular Sunday. I let myself sleep in, as usual. I sat on my phone for a while, as usual. Then I showered and threw on some eye masks, as usual. My turning point of the day was the craving of my favorite fruity, delicious, and refreshing smoothie. Now, this is not abnormal for me, I love my smoothies. But as I went outside I began to appreciate the beautiful day we were having; a sunny one (the first in a while) filled with what felt like the freshest air I would ever smell. I drove down to my favorite spot for food around campus, Nu Kitchen. That smoothie. That goat cheese and avocado egg sandwich. I loved food even more in that moment. From then on, I knew this Sunday would dier.
As I drove back to school with that magical smoothie in my hand, I received news that my friends were on their way to the baseball game. How could I not go? It was beautiful out, and I would get to spend time with my amazing friends as we caught up and laughed about the weekend. It happened to be just that. We soaked up the sun as we rooted for our team…and pretended to know what was going on. We stayed at the game for about 2 hours, and followed it with a windows down/loud music drive to get our big iced teas from Dunkin’.
Approaching campus once again, I received a text asking to sit on “Wheeler Beach” (the big grassy hill behind our dorm). I took my iced tea and met my friend on the beach. We had an excellent catch up session surrounded by the nature of the day. A good talk can cure so much. To our surprise, our guy friends walked up the hill with golf clubs and some soft golf balls. We took turns swinging, and competed with each other over how far our swing would hit. More friends joined us, and brought a speaker and blankets out. A perfect day.
We followed our three-hour outdoor session with a dining hall dinner lit by golden hour. The sun just did not escape us! We laughed harder than we’ve ever had over some mediocre pasta, it was great. The spirits were amazing. And you know what they (I) say, a warm day always has to end with a little something called ice cream.
Another windows-down drive to Cold Stone Creamery, what a beautiful place it is. At this point, my friends and I have seriously never laughed harder. Laughter, too, is healing. It was this moment where I took a second to stop and breathe in how lucky I am and how truly appreciative I am for the people I am surrounded by. My cotton candy ice cream got to share this special moment with me.
As I move on with the week, I reflect on how this much needed care-free day impacted me. Getting out, socializing, being spontaneous, putting work and responsibility aside, allowed me to just enjoy the moment. As a result, I was fully re-charged! This week I’ve created a productive environment for myself; I have been active every day. I’m on top of my work. I had a day dedicated to spring cleaning. I’ve been able to talk to my family as much as I want to. I was able to accomplish all of these amazing things! It may not explicitly seem like so, but I am sure the attitude and mindset that this Sunday provided me with is intertwined with the goodness of my week. How could it not be? That was the freshest start and reset to a week that could exist. Before this one, I normally hadn’t put much thought into how I spent my Sundays, but from now on, I absolutely will.