graphic by Nakya Castille
Madelyn.
I knew COVID was serious when I was sitting in first period, AP Lang, and I saw the unease on Mr. Silvers’ face as he told us we had this “extended” spring break. That’s when all of my fear set in. I had this gut feeling that this two week spring break wasn’t going to be the end of this.
In March, I felt so trapped and had no idea how to deal with how I was feeling. I knew everyone in some way was scared and didn’t know what the future held. In my family, there are some members who are extremely immunocompromised, so that fear and worry that I felt was intensified. My mother has an autoimmune disorder called multiple sclerosis. It is already hard seeing someone you love in pain, but COVID tripled my worries about my mom’s health. My family was taking extreme precautions and that included my mom and me not leaving our house for two months while my stepdad took on the task of grocery shopping. During May, I started noticing some family members not taking appropriate precautions, and I had to make the difficult decision to distance myself away from them. It was really hard being away from my family and my close friends, but that was the sacrifice I had to make if I wanted to keep my mom healthy.
Then another disaster hit. In May, my aunt contracted the virus and was having a tough battle. I was so terrified for her and there were times where all of our family was unsure if she was going to be able to fight any longer. She explained that she could feel her lungs filling and that nothing has ever scared her that much. After what seemed like years of her fighting, she was finally able to overcome the virus and get healthy. It is crazy to see that she still faces memory issues as a possible consequence of the virus. She tells the same joke or story over and over. We all laugh again and just listen because we know she can’t help it. I forget often that I actually knew someone that had to go to battle with COVID and thankfully survived.
I never thought I would miss the TJ halls and atmosphere this much. Just being around friends and just sitting in the parking lot talking are luxuries that I no longer take for granted. I would complain about school things a lot, and now I just want to take it all back. I’m a senior, along with many others, doing school at home. I don’t get the joy of homecoming. I will most likely not experience a prom or graduation. Things are just hard, and I don’t think anyone besides the classes of 2020 and 2021 can truly say that senioritis has never been harder to deal with.
