A Very COVID-19 Year in Review
March 13, 2021 marked the one year anniversary of the coronavirus effectively shutting down the country, throwing an unsuspecting nation of people indoors. With instructions to commence life as usual in a virtual, no-contact and unusual way, a full year has come and gone. For students at Penn State, the weight of the past year has been heavy.
Senior Brooke Swales’s biggest hurdle during this time was adjusting to school online.
“It made me angry that the classes that actually pertain to my major, being a junior/senior throughout this year, were online because no one really tried,” Swales said. “I missed out on getting hands-on experience for my major, and instead, got classes designed easier for this new way of life.”
As Swales inches closer to graduation, she finds herself worrying about the job market, and what office life would even look like in the coming years.
“I am excited to join the workforce but am looking forward to the day it can be done in an office and around others,” she said.
Kaitlyne Kramer, a junior engineering student, described the past year as a “big ball of frustration” and is desperate for COVID-19 to be left in the past.
“It’s kind of sad that we have been living like this for an entire year. I miss being able to do normal daily things like go to class or go to the movies,” Kramer said. “I think we’re all waiting to be able to return to what our lives used to look like.”
What Kramer misses most is sitting and taking classes in-person, where she is able to stay focused, engaged and ask questions from her professors and peers.
“The most frustrating part of going to school is not being able to physically go to class. Zoom style lessons result in minimum attention and not understanding material as well,” Kramer said.
Junior Alex Baker said this year flew by in the blink of an eye, with Baker citing school and the lack of social engagement as his largest challenges.
Baker has begun to utilize Facetime and Discord in order to speak with his friends through quarantine, and has picked up new exercise routines. He even started baking as a hobby, along with hiking and painting.
“I feel as though I may have had it easier than others. I have always had a support network with me during this pandemic that others may have not been able to rely on,” he said.
Junior Owen Walsh has used this time to keep himself busy with work to distract from the stress of isolation and boredom of a virtual world.
“The hardest part right now is looking back at where I was a year ago, on spring break in Florida at a baseball game, and realizing that’s impossible to do right now,” Walsh said. “One of the biggest struggles has not been able to hang out with friends and go to large events like sports games. I was at a baseball game when I heard the news Penn State was closing which marks the beginning of the pandemic for me. I can’t wait to go to a game this summer to mark the end.”
Walsh is hopeful that the U.S. will slowly make its way back to normalcy, which means that sports games and a normal senior year would end up in his future.
For Frank Natale, though, he struggled finding enough stuff to do to pass the time in isolation. Natale has turned to movies and shows to try and keep him occupied.
“I’m not sure if things will ever be quite the same as they were before,” Natale said, “[But] I hope we can get past this difficult time and make the best of things.”
“This has been the worst and longest year ever” said Tyler Eglauf, who has spent his year trying to focus on his own health and wellness.
“You need to invest time and money into yourself,” Eglauf said he learned. “Living a healthy lifestyle is going to allow you to thrive in life.”
Junior Jackson Smoko used the time in isolation to focus on himself as well.
“The pandemic has really allowed me to grow into my own skin. and focus on fitness and trying to improve myself,” Smoko said. “Also, getting better at cooking and just trying to understand what I want from life more.”
The common theme, though, across these students’ stories is the idea of gratitude — more specifically, they regret that they failed to appreciate the freedoms they had a year ago.
“I guess I’ve taken normal daily activities for granted,” Kramer said. “Activities like going to the gym without having to make a time slot, going through a drive through without wearing a mask, and walking down the street and seeing people’s faces.”
Baker, the junior, finds his comfort and gratitude in the smaller things these days, too.
“I now greatly appreciate warm weather and being able to go outside now that spring is approaching,” he said. “[And] I look forward to seeing everyone’s faces once we no longer wear masks.”
Link to video interview: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18ncRsNLOUDDB8wlLNNT4tgSILsKYZMWH/view?usp=sharing
