Everyone’s experiences differ in quarantine. Some devote all their time to finishing their homework, while making sure to stay inside. Others save little time for homework because of the fact that they hang out with a small circle of friends. Personally, I am all of them. At first, I devoted my time to finishing all of my assignments on time, even if I sacrificed my sleep for it. Then, I began hanging out with a friend who provided a welcome distraction, and sometimes we even completed our class work. 

Online learning seemed so easy at first, but with a job on top of trying to maintain a normal social life during this, it challenged me in unfathomable ways. For someone like me, my parents tried to act easy going, but, hearing the stories on the news, it became clear we needed to be taking the necessary precautions. I only went to the local Walmart when needed, and I went out to eat pretty much every day. My friend and I mostly stayed in each other’s houses, but we wanted so BADLY to go out. 

My after school job turned into more of a full time job that took most of my time. This new aspect of my life took a toll on my school work and me. Working for a local grocery store, my bosses needed all hands on deck. Most of the kids there showed little to no care in the world about their school work or some paid people to do it for them. Me? I still cared about my school work and, though I became less studious, I began freaking out about how much work I really needed to complete. 

The first couple of weeks I tried my hardest to stay up as much as possible, but that only worked for so long. In one particular week, I worked pretty heavily, but my boss graced me with two days off, so I took those days to finish all my school work–no matter what. I tried to do it the next week, but my hours were picking up from 25 hours to 40 hours. I wanted to forget about school, but it lingered in the back of my mind. 

As the school year begins to draw to a close, I wish for the clock to go back and for things to go differently. Now, I realize I just put too much on my plate, because school, work and a social life seems a little hard, but the nearing summer means I will not have to worry about the social aspect until next August. This whole experience brought a tidal wave of emotions and difficulties, but with the grace of teachers, amazing friends and understanding bosses, I made it through my sophomore year. 

Bring on summer vacation with hopes for the return of normalcy, whatever that looks like now. Bring on the new memories and new friendships that will blossom within the next year. Bring on junior year and a new set of challenges and goals.