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How I Feel About Starting School During A Pandemic -

Response to October Written Prompt 

October 15, 2020

HOW I FEEL ABOUT STARTING SCHOOL DURING A PANDEMIC - RESPONSE TO OCTOBER WRITTEN PROMPT

October 15, 2020

By Anna Carsley-Jones, Grade 12

Prompt: How do you feel about starting quarantine during pandemic?

I don't know. I would like to know how I feel, but I just don't. Everyday month, week and day is different. I go from blank, to sad, to inspired, to tired, to crying, to sleeping, to ignoring, to angry, to laughing, to satisfied, to feeling like I'll never be satisfied. Some days, I cycle through each one of these feelings. The pandemic has been a rollercoaster of emotions, except not fast or thrilling. It’s been an old, slow, rusty rollercoaster that gains a tiny bit of momentum before coming to a brief stop, every 15 seconds, making a horrible braking noise. A rusty rollercoaster that you worry you or others might get tetanus from. A roller coaster I desperately want to get off. 

One thing that makes me happy is that I get to see people now- in person -as I am doing hybrid. And seeing 50% of my peers is definitely better than 0%. The social aspect of school is so important- so when I was only online from March to June, I struggled. The digital world is amazing, but I don't want to live through it. Now I get joy and laughter from being with others, face to face - although 2 meters away -and having conversations that feel real- not static. I wish we were completely back to school, no masks, no distancing. I wish the pandemic had lasted only a month, but here we are- 6 months later.

So 6 months later, starting a new school year,- my last high school year -how do I feel? I’m blank, I’m sad, I’m inspired, I'm tired, I’m crying, I'm sleeping, I’m ignoring, I'm angry, I'm laughing, I’m satisfied, I'm wondering if I'll ever be satisfied, and I'm trying to have hope for what is to come.