School ended on March 17th. Or at least, us students physically being in school and experiencing its miseries, ended on March 17th. I never could have predicted that two months later, I would actually be missing school. Of course, I miss all my friends and all my teachers (ESPECIALLY the latter, who knows when I’ll see you guys again??), but it feels so strange that after 12 years of reluctant attendance and begrudgingly doing all the work we were given. Maybe I enjoyed the structure school gave my life, because right now I stay up 20 hours a day, and probably can’t tell you whether it’s Wednesday or Sunday. Or maybe I enjoyed the crowded hallways, compared to my desolate desk and computer at home. It’s unfortunate that after years of hard work, us seniors will have no prom, or graduation; no celebratory finish, no happy ending. But in the words of Spencer Johnson, “Life moves on, and so should we”. Our current situation is very much out of our control, and all we can do is make the best of what we have. We continue to try to live our lives to the best of our ability, even if we need to social distance and wear face masks at all times. Maybe people will begin to appreciate the world outside of their homes more; I for one cannot wait to finally go back outside, without fear of disease, and wander around New York City, or even just walk through my neighborhood.
What is interesting to think about is how the Covid-19 pandemic and quarantine will change our everyday lives. I’m sure people will still wear PPEs and rubber antibacterial gloves for months, even years, to come. Will we begin to take new and more precautions in terms of sanitation and social life? I could easily see stores, restaurants, museums, and other public locations limiting the number of visitors allowed in at a time. People may even become more apprehensive of social distancing, and may be extremely uncomfortable with coming close to other humans (imagine an entire generation of claustrophobics and hypochondriacs. Eugh!). What about school? Due to quarantine, many classes resorted to online meetings via Zoom, and classwork had a much greater technological focus. Will we see this trend of heavy use of technology for school continue? I know for some students that would be a dream, and for others a nightmare. Even as many seniors head into their first semester of college, some universities are still holding online classes instead of classes on campus (to the utter dismay of many tuition-paying parents).
My biggest concern amongst all this is whether or not we as Americans will take anything from this. It is my opinion that we were extremely unprepared for this pandemic, and that it was no single person’s fault. Not only did a large portion of the population, especially those in areas with high Covid-19 infection rates, continuously break quarantine, some even without the proper protection, but many people suffered financially too. A lack of a job puts a strain on families that depend on their income, and a lack of customers puts a strain on small-business owners, who depend on their clientele to continue to stay in business. Covid-19 was almost successfully in crushing America economically, even with the financial aid provided by the government. It is my hope that if we are ever to have any kind of pandemic on the same scale as Covid-19 again that we are better equipped to deal with it.
Even better yet, I hope something like this never happens again. A complete upset to our average lifestyle is something that I was not ready for, and I could imagine many others were not ready for it as well. A return to constant normalcy is something I’m sure most people are wishing for right now. Until then, however, we carry on, we push through, and we make our way to the light at the end of the tunnel.
What is interesting to think about is how the Covid-19 pandemic and quarantine will change our everyday lives. I’m sure people will still wear PPEs and rubber antibacterial gloves for months, even years, to come. Will we begin to take new and more precautions in terms of sanitation and social life? I could easily see stores, restaurants, museums, and other public locations limiting the number of visitors allowed in at a time. People may even become more apprehensive of social distancing, and may be extremely uncomfortable with coming close to other humans (imagine an entire generation of claustrophobics and hypochondriacs. Eugh!). What about school? Due to quarantine, many classes resorted to online meetings via Zoom, and classwork had a much greater technological focus. Will we see this trend of heavy use of technology for school continue? I know for some students that would be a dream, and for others a nightmare. Even as many seniors head into their first semester of college, some universities are still holding online classes instead of classes on campus (to the utter dismay of many tuition-paying parents).
My biggest concern amongst all this is whether or not we as Americans will take anything from this. It is my opinion that we were extremely unprepared for this pandemic, and that it was no single person’s fault. Not only did a large portion of the population, especially those in areas with high Covid-19 infection rates, continuously break quarantine, some even without the proper protection, but many people suffered financially too. A lack of a job puts a strain on families that depend on their income, and a lack of customers puts a strain on small-business owners, who depend on their clientele to continue to stay in business. Covid-19 was almost successfully in crushing America economically, even with the financial aid provided by the government. It is my hope that if we are ever to have any kind of pandemic on the same scale as Covid-19 again that we are better equipped to deal with it.
Even better yet, I hope something like this never happens again. A complete upset to our average lifestyle is something that I was not ready for, and I could imagine many others were not ready for it as well. A return to constant normalcy is something I’m sure most people are wishing for right now. Until then, however, we carry on, we push through, and we make our way to the light at the end of the tunnel.