Paused

Sydney Tappan, Assistant Editor-in-Chief / Campus Life Editor

More often than not the last six months we have only been filled with negatives as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. While there is plenty to be saddened about, the fact of the matter is nothing lasts forever. It is true that we have all lost months of our lives that we will never get back but it is important to recognize the positives of what we all did with those months consciously or subconsciously.

What I mean by this is regardless of you consciously working to better yourself during the months of quarantine or simply subconsciously giving yourself time to be at peace. It is what happened during this time that will make a lasting impact, it is time that we will never get back but also time that we will never get again. To simply do nothing can be seen as a blessing in disguise. Fortunate and unfortunate at the same time, we will never again be granted time to do nothing. To have the choice to be able to work or reflect on yourself without the concern of school or a job or even life and its demands in general.

You often hear people with the phrase “I wish time would just stop” and for a little while time did stop. People spent more time at home with their families, reading books, watching television, learning. In the most positive way we watched the clock, did nothing, and wasted time. Time that, prior to the pandemic, was relative. The world was at a standstill for once and absolutely nothing truly mattered except for staying home and staying safe.

While so much was lost from this experience, so much was also gained. People made decisions that they otherwise would not have been made without the impending doom of the pandemic. Families had the ability to really be a family as kids were home from school and parents were home from work. Friends had different conversations over FaceTime that they may not have had if they were face-to-face. To have that difficult conversation or interaction that they had been afraid to have for so long. To learn who the people truly are that you have surrounded yourself with. Who truly matters and who truly cares about you. Though there are exceptions to every situation, it is nice to think people utilized this time in a positive way to impact themselves and those around them.

Books that would have sat on the shelf for who knows how many more years were finally opened and read cover to cover. Recipes that were insignificant were tested and tasted. Relationships were made and mended in the name of a global pandemic. New music was made, found, and loved. Learning in its most simplistic form was done.

We learned to not take handshakes, hugs, and close interactions for granted. We learned how to put others and their wellbeing above ourselves in the most selfless way. We reminisced with friends on memories that we may never relive; but rejoiced over the fact that there will be new memories to make. New ways of making memories and new people to make memories with.

Personally, I may have lost the last couple semesters of my college career but I also gained friends and experiences that I would not have had if life had continued on the path we all thought it would. I made decisions that did not cross my mind before March of this year. I took opportunities that were not an option prior. While I am overly aware of what I’m missing out on without a global crisis, I am also aware of what I have gained. I was given the time to reflect on who I am and who I want to be. I grew as a person, a friend, a daughter, and a sister.

It is a privilege to simply be healthy and alive; to be given the opportunity to waste our own time.