Coronavirus or COVID-19 started at the end of 2019. Wuhan, China had its first case and from there the virus seemed to spread. Initially, it hardly affected me personally. My dad works for United Airlines so I heard about it, but there were no direct effects of it. Then, one of my best friends studying abroad in Italy got the news he was being sent home. Personally, this was pretty good news for me for a multitude of reasons. I didn’t expect to see him for four months and now I would see him over spring break and I knew he would be safe at home. I remember Wednesday, March 11was when the coronavirus started to get serious in my house. My mom is a news junkie, she started informing me of school shut-downs, town lockdowns, the government ordering people home from abroad, etc. It was all so weird to me because just a week prior a professor asked us if we had heard rumors of Penn State not returning after Spring break. All of us replying we would absolutely be back, then here I was waiting for the email of Penn State telling us to stay home.
I live in Arizona, so in order to get home for Spring break, I had to go through international hub airports. At the start of the break, I went from State College to Dulles International Airport to Dallas Fort Worth to visit my dad in Texas. I travel a good amount so immediately I noticed the differences, how empty my flights were and the eerieness of the airports themselves. It was soon after my initial travels I developed a cough and still, today carry said cough. From Dallas, I went home and flew into Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport where two days prior there were three confirmed cases.
In the weeks leading up to Spring break, my friends and I had planned so many fun things to do while home, but my cough warranted I self-quarantine. I have self-quarantined for almost a week now. It’s hard to be in one place, but I’ve found ways to entertain myself. My friend’s families have all also decided to self-quarantine so in a sense we’re all in this together which makes the actual quarantine a little easier. Today, Penn State got the news we wouldn’t be returning for the 2020 academic year. With everything going on, it’s hard to get more bad news, but I know that in the long run, it’s the safest thing to do for us and the public. I worry about my grandparents, my friend’s families, and everyone else the virus may affect, but all we can do is remain hopeful and do our part in helping the stop of COVID-19.
It’s weird to look at this picture because I had no idea the extent of COVID-19. We were in the AT&T Stadium, a large stadium, with thousands of people. Just a few days later activities similar to this event were canceled because of the need for social distancing.