REFLECTIONS ON A PANDEMIC THOUGHTS, CONSIDERATIONS, POEMS, PHILOSOPHIES & UNDERSTANDINGS NOELLE BIEHLE intin awingI 1 Open with INTRODUCTION The coronavirus pandemic has changed us all. No one could have predicted the ways in which we would become different, in our outlooks, our physical living conditions, and in the ways we connect (or don’t) with each other. Towards the end of April, I sent our seventh graders a collection of questions, created by the organization Facing History and Ourselves. The same organization created an activity called “Toolbox for Care,” in which students we asked to put together a collection of items for both self-care and care for others. What follows is their thoughts and ideas during the time of quarantine. Thank you, Noelle, for your breathtaking art! Frieda Katz At this time where there is a worldwide pandemic spreading fear and anguish across the globe, pain is unavoidable. It can be the mental pain of losing a family member, friends or physical pain where the virus has gotten to you. The pain can also be subtle, such as missing friends who are trapped inside their homes like 2 yourself. This pain is a reflection of how human interaction is vital for people to survive through life. Distress can cause depression or stressing about education, work, sports or health. The corona virus has brought more stress around the world than anything else my generation has seen. The serenity of isolation, Alone on a hill of daisies, As bright as the sun blinding my eyes, Forcing them to close, and eventually relax under the heat, My feet brushing against the grass, Filled with warmth but at the same time, Swaying to the rhythm of the autumn’s breeze, If only this was real, Such peace, No wars or diseases or death, Coming from behind, And grabbing your loved ones from your shaking arms, Not looking back once too see the pain it's brought, To a broken world, Never perfect, Never will be perfect. Emily Vidal I used to play this game with my best friend Zoe. We were at summer camp and it was a game we played in the pool. This is how it went. We would make up our own choreography in the pool and would do 3 backflips and a cartwheel. Those are just examples, but it made me feel like we could do anything. I know it's weird, but that's just how I felt. I hope people say that I’m a nice person, but overall, I don’t really care what people say about me. I just hope that if anyone is having problems they feel they can come to me. I am grateful for my friends and family. I will never stop saying this, but my friends, family and cats are the most important things to me. I’m thankful for them always being with me. I really like the change to remote learning. I’m getting a lot more sleep than I used to and I’m eating breakfast, so I’m not hungry in the morning anymore. Some positive things that have happened are that I get to have more time with my family. I can focus on my self-esteem more and be more confident in myself. I’m scared that I’m going to get it, but I’m not scared of dying because everyone dies in the end. I’m more afraid of how I’m going to die. I’m scared that it will be painful and lonely. For example, if I’m out shopping and all of sudden I can’t breathe because of corona, then I don't know if anyone would help me. The thing I miss most is, obviously, my friends. I miss them so much that sometimes all I want to do is cry, but I don’t because I know that one day I’ll be able to see them. I just have to be patient. 3 I think a lot of people will be more aware of what they have and not take it for granted. We took fresh air for granted or being able to touch the people you love. Quarantine changed me. I get to hang out with my family more, but then we get into a lot more fights, so it's bad and good. I’ve noticed that we never really communicate with each other. We don’t really have a lot of conversations. I've noticed that I don’t have a lot of self-confidence. I don’t really know how to be confident, so during quarantine I've been trying to build my confidence up. I miss my friends, fresh air, bubble tea, freedom, and hugs. I won’t take them for granted by doing them every second of every day. I have kind of grown apart from some of my friends from school, but there are still a lot of people I’m friends with. Someone told me that I looked pretty and they made me feel happy. I would like to tell someone else how pretty they are so they can feel as happy as I was. Beyonce inspires me because she never stops trying, even if everyone is bringing her down. She just keeps going on. We have been Facetiming and texting our relatives and it's the same with my friends. Keith Johnson Beyblades was one of my favorite games to play when I was little. One memory I have of playing the game was when I spun them so hard that when they collided with one another they cracked. It made me feel free because I could forget about all my other problems. I hope people say that I light up a room. The reason why is because it will allow me to make friends easier. I also hope they say I'm good at making people laugh. Today I feel like I'm trying to survive to see the next. My boredom has grown immensely ever since I haven't been able to see my friends in person and play sports with them. I’m grateful for the roof over my head and being able to wake up every day. I think people will be more aware of their health. I’m always tired for no reason. My family has been a lot more agitated towards me. At school I used to talk to Callen a lot. Now I rarely speak with him. Distance learning has been exhausting. A challenge is waking up on time every day. We end early. I have discovered that I am always tired. I haven’t eaten breakfast in a month. 4 In 50 years, I will say this was a pandemic that stopped our social lives. During this time, we were very bored. We felt that there was nowhere to go, that every day was no different from the last. We felt that we were going to be unfit if this kept up. Every time we do martial arts, we end up out of breath. This weekend you sent me a wonderful note. Anybody who makes their dreams a reality I admire. Thank you, mother, for being there for me. Thank you for waking me up before school started almost every day. If not for you I would be late to school every day. It has made my family more cautious of other people that may or may not have coronavirus. My community now consists of masks and gloves on the daily. ______________________________________________________________________________ Nolia Dorset I hope people say I’m a good friend, someone who is there for others, reliable, and trustworthy. These are the most important things to me. Today I feel sad because I don’t want camp to be canceled. I am grateful that all my family and friends are healthy. I am happy that no one has corona, or any other illness. My daily routine has changed a lot. I now get to wake up at 8:30 instead of 7:15 on the weekdays, which is amazing! School starts later and ends earlier, which I am so happy about! Why can’t it always be like this?! Now we have to be on Zoom, which is kind of weird. It’s not bad, just different. I’m okay with this change, though I’d rather have things back to normal. I am very bored at home. – there’s my six-word memoir. This is significant because this is how I feel every day. It’s boring to not see people, it’s not fun. This represents my experience because this is all that it is. Being bored all the time, staying home, not getting to do anything. This is how I've felt through the entire quarantine. It sucks and I’m ready for it to be over. Some positive things about physical distancing is that people are learning to be more independent. They are forced to be alone, so they have to figure out how to cope. Also, everyone's relationships will grow stronger because they realize how much they need each other. Some negative things are that we miss our friends/family a lot. You don’t notice how much you need someone until you can’t see them anymore. Another negative is that when we're sad, it's hard for our friends to comfort us because they’re not here. The fear I am experiencing right now is the fear that someone I love will get sick. I don’t want anyone to contract the virus, especially people who have had pre-existing conditions.