by Faith Collins
My friends and I were sitting outside when we got the news: There would be no school for a couple of weeks due to the COVID-19 virus. I had heard that students were being tested at my school for the virus, but I hadn’t realized how serious it was becoming. I remember the confusion. My friends and I were talking and trying to figure out what was going to happen. I didn’t know whether someone had it or not at my school. I started to feel nervous and scared during that time because some of those students who were being tested were my friends and I wanted to know if everything was okay.
Very quickly so much stuff in the world was starting to change. Before I knew it, shelter in place was ordered by the government, and no one was allowed to leave their homes. Even worse, the government decided to close all schools down for the rest of the school year and teach online instead. When I heard the news it made me feel like a pressure was on my shoulders, because more work was being assigned online than usual. I’ve never experienced such frustration and boredom as having to work on a computer every day from home.
Everything was different. It felt like I couldn’t see my friends or have fun. Online school wasn’t something that I didn’t want to continue to do. I knew I would have to learn how to cope with the situation until everything could go back to being the same before COVID-19 happened. Since the pandemic has happened I have been going on walks on a daily basis to relax my mind and get fresh air. I would want someone to know that when something like this starts to get overwhelming, to go out and breathe, take time to yourself, and reflect on things that you are grateful for.
YR Raw 