Since the quarantine hit, it has been an unusual time. Each day seems to bring a strange mixture of normalcy and panic. While there has been a plethora of changes, many of which I can’t control, I have found that there is much I can control. Like many, my daily schedule has changed completely during this time. I think the biggest change has been my sleeping schedule. Personally, I am someone who is able to get the most amount of work done during the night, so this has affected my sleeping schedule. Therefore, I have found myself going to sleep at four in the morning and waking up for my morning classes. During the evening, I have made time for home-cooked meals and go on nightly walks for about an hour. These new evening activities have been therapeutic. It allows me to reflect on what I have been working on during the week and how I am doing mentally.
Before starting online classes, I had a lot of free time to finally partake in activities I have been meaning to do. For instance, I was able to read a couple of books that I collected over the past year. I spent some time in the kitchen baking and trying new recipes. Bullet journaling has been something I have found to be quite enjoyable. Also, I have been practicing ASL a lot. I have been learning how to sign different songs and I have found a way to teach my little cousins a little bit of ASL over Facetime. Now that classes have begun, I have less free time, but I have been listening to a lot of new and old music.
I have taken several online classes before, but this time around has been more difficult. I have never taken more than twelve units online before and I willingly choose to take those classes in that particular structure. Therefore, with these classes I had to change the way I view them since they are now online. I think that there are pros and cons to these new online classes. I appreciate that I can get my work done at any time and many of the lectures are posted for me to learn at my own pace. However, some of these classes are just not meant to be online. I have found that, for most of my classes, I enjoy the atmosphere of being in class and learning collectively. Another thing I noticed about these online classes is professors seem to be giving more ‘busy work,’ which takes more time to complete. But overall, I’m grateful for all of the professors who genuinely care about the well-being of their students and who reach out to us. Many of them are understanding that these are hard times for all of us and that this is a large transition that will take time to get used to.
Honestly, at first the adjustment to quarantine was rough. The first two weeks were especially difficult since I didn’t know what to do with my time and felt trapped. I had the ability and time to do whatever I wanted or go wherever I wanted, but I couldn’t. Now that I was back in my hometown, close to my family, it was difficult to not dwell on the fact that they were close by but I couldn’t visit them. I found that, even though I’m an introverted person, I missed seeing my friends and family in person. It’s especially hard since I live with just my mother, who is constantly working at the hospital. This caused me to be concerned for her safety and well-being during this time. However, while these thoughts and fears are still with me today, I have found ways to lessen them. I understand that this pandemic will eventually pass and we will all be stronger from this experience. During this time, I have learned not to take anything for granted, even the small things in life. I have also learned the importance of community and support. Without my close friends and family I wouldn’t be as content and peaceful as I am now. During these times, I have become closer to these people, for which I am very grateful.
- Kierstin Dunaway (Class of 2022, Psychology)