As all of us know, the Covid pandemic is causing everyone to shift into a new lifestyle. I did not think much of this virus, and did not take it very seriously until it came to Hawai’i. When the institution announced that we were going online, I thought that it was smart and the right choice to do it before the virus had a chance to spread across campus. Along with classes, sports were also cancelled. I was devastated because this was my last year of eligibility. It was so hard to process knowing that all my months of blood, sweat, and tears were wasted and just gone with a decision made in an hour. All of our championships were cancelled, and our senior night that next day was cancelled as well. It was a hard pill to swallow knowing that this last year that I had looked forward to all my life was taken away. I sacrificed holidays, time with my family and friends, nights out for birthdays, my body, my mind, my soul, everything for this sport. I have been in my house since the day they cancelled our sport, and it feels like two months went by, but in actuality, it was only three weeks. Time is moving way slower than it was before all this chaos. I can’t see any of my friends or go out with them. I have to be extra careful because I live with my parents and I don’t want them catching the virus from me. It is basically a life of house arrest. Life has definitely changed for me during this pandemic, but it won’t stop me from making the most of what we got.
My daily routine went from set in stone and consistent to waking up and sleeping at different times. It is funny how when we don’t have to reason to get up, our whole schedule gets thrown off. I have to make a whole new schedule, or at least try to. It is really hard to find the motivation to take your eyes off the tv show you really really love and couldn’t watch because you had school or practice. My average day now consists of feeding my dogs in the morning, eating breakfast and watching tv, then doing homework in the middle of the day while I eat lunch. The midday is usually when my brain likes to focus the most. My only online class that I have to go on video chat is ICS 212 at 6pm. That class is a struggle sometimes because I am laying in bed trying to stay awake. Learning is definitely better in a classroom, but I am also a pen and paper type of gal so I may prefer old fashion ways better. My other classes were a pretty easy transition into online because assignments are straightforward and self-explanatory. ICS 212 is the only class I really struggle with because it is a lot of figuring out what the problems are and figuring out how to code on your own. Other than that, the class part of this big change has been the easiest of everything.
In times like these, it is important to stay positive and hope for the best. Yes, our worlds were flipped upside down and everyone is scrambling to figure out how we are all going to continue our lives as normal as possible over the internet. I made a list of all the good things that have come out of this quarantine. I get to spend more time with my family and my pets. With track and school, I was always at school for the most part and I hardly could eat dinner with my family. I would only see them sporadically during the day and I hardly saw my pets either. Now I get to do all the things I didn’t have time for such as teaching my pets to swim, taking them for walks, cooking with my mom, etc. This is quality time that we won’t get back once we get back to reality. I like to stay fit and try to workout when I can. Me and my mom can workout together now as we make up drills with the workout bands and have a good laugh sometimes, too. I also have time to do arts and crafts that I never could do before. I never had time to just sit on my patio to paint or draw because I had to use all my freetime to finish homework. I can honestly say that even though being stuck in the house has made me go a little stir crazy, this time to myself and my family has made stress non-existent and put me in a better head space. I can put more effort into my homework without worrying about running out of time. Time is so precious and we forget that sometimes. I think that people have to stop thinking that it is such a bad thing that we are stuck in the house, and start being grateful that they are healthy and safe and get back the time they lost in their everyday lives.