We all know that 2020 has been one of the most devastating, eye-opening, stressful years of the 21st century. As of this writing, 276,000 people have died from Covid-19 in the U.S. alone. Millions of people around the world have lost their jobs or been forced to shutter their businesses.

Once school shut down in March I didn’t really know what to do with myself. As some of you may know, I am a dancer, and my studio had to close, as well, and that made me feel like a lump on a log. From March through August was miserable. I wasn’t active; instead, I sat on the couch and watched movies. I really let myself go. The first time I gathered with other people was in August when I saw my friends for the first time in months. We all quarantined for two weeks before seeing each other. It was two of my friends’ birthdays, so we all had a day together and it was really nice seeing them. 

Once September arrived, and the dance studio reopened, my life really started to come back. At dance we are required to wear a mask at all times, which is hard; still, we all wear our masks properly and are definitely building up our stamina. School resumed, too, although I chose remote learning because I knew many students wouldn’t follow the mask rules and I wouldn’t fee safe seeing masks worn below noses. Remote learning is definitely a lot harder than I expected. Not having a teacher to help you every day is a bit of a challenge, but I am still learning. 

So far the world is slowly trying to push things back to normal, but I believe that we shouldn’t rush into things, because the issue still hasn’t cleared up. Not one bit. This is a very scary situation we are all living in, but we can’t pretend everything is normal when it isn’t. I think that store owners should still limit the number of people inside, and the same for anywhere else like doctors’ offices and public buildings. A lot of families traveled for Thanksgiving this year, and as a result we are seeing a big increase in cases. Cases may skyrocket after Christmas; in my opinion, if you travel out of state and come back, you should get tested and quarantine for 10-14 days.

Living this new lifestyle is nerve-racking, but I know that one day this will all be over and we can live a somewhat normal life again.