Author – Christine Z.
To say that 2020 has been an era of the unexpected is quite the understatement.
Within the last 3 months alone, I have found myself constantly surprised at every Snapchat memory notification that pops up, prompting me to reminiscence about a drastically different time 365 days ago: when we traveled freely, spontaneously visited others, and maintained our connection with the world in a very physical space. We owned our lives with excitement and pride, ready to take on our world.
As an incoming freshmen, I remember looking for dorm decorations, buying textbooks, and wavering between the self-assurance that this would be THAT coming of age main character time period, or like a fish out of water on the path to drowning. This was supposed to be our time to grow out of our comfort zones and experience a sliver of the expansive world. Our year at college was meant to rival the roaring 20’s, yet instead it was met with waves of uprooting everyone’s normal.
Regardless, I am so proud of my fellow class of 2023 members for making it through this year and for continuing to stay engaged, involved, and active in creating a better future.
As this year progresses, there seems to be a new wave of, something, every single month. Overexposure is the new norm as the media tries to feed us something to qualm the uncertainty of the future, not necessarily realizing that this surge contributes more to the confusion. While we live in a society so emphatic on staying connected, I rely on creating “pockets of peace” to self-regulate and learning the balance between alone time and staying in contact with friends.
Upon reflection, so many of these friends and connections I made blossomed out of candid interactions: from running into each other at mealtimes, to bonding over having to spend long hours at the same events. These small exchanges of rolling eyes at each other during a monotone lectures that nearly put us to sleep still held more valuable connection than the online Zoom University, despite the best efforts of my professors and peers. The aspect of connection felt physically in the classroom dissipated through our screens.
Along with our connection to campus, the moments like sprinting through the sprinklers after a night out and drinking mochas late at night, which are truly irreplaceable and serve as the scenes that build up the ‘college experience’, turned into mid-day walks and buying water bottles for our families. Within a few week, we were no longer the main characters of our own lives.
Looking forward, I feel the concerns of others regarding how this upcoming school year may progress. I feel extremely grateful that my parents can support my education during this time period and for the flexibility from my university. To the class of 2024, I am interested to hear your input and how you view these circumstances in relation to what you originally envisioned your future to be. While these times are unprecedented, we shouldn’t feel as if efforts have gone completely to waste, every experience: good or bad, has some sort of lesson in store.
For me, the lesson has been resilience. Although we moved into the walls of our old homes, although we were removed into the background seen, I witness so many of my peers from around the role using their voice and taking action still. We, as a nation, as students, as both children and adults, will push through this time. We will slowly and safely branch to a more normal time. Step by step. Until we forget about the slowly paced movement of today and are swept back in the bustling of tomorrow.