When a pandemic threatens all of the normalcy the entire world holds, it’s hard to not end up learning a few lessons while we all sit at home and reflect. I, for one, was on a spring break road trip of a lifetime right before this happened, feeling untouchable by this virus and loading my schedule up with expensive coffee shop visits and an insane amount of city explorations. I saw the news about quarantine on my phone and in restaurants, but brushed it off, selfishly not wanting to think about it because I was having so much fun traveling. Things are much different now two months later, and when I think about my mindset then compared to my mindset now, I’ve definitely realized a few things that I probably never would have tackled without this.

You never know what you’ve got until it’s gone.

I think every college senior anticipates the last month or two of school. You know it’s the last time you’ll be a student (unless you’re headed off to grad school), the last time you’ll be with that group of friends, the last time you’ll live in that apartment and be a fake adult. I remember passing by restaurants and stores downtown and thinking to myself: “I’ve never been there, but I’ll save that for the last month at school when it’s time to celebrate”. I remember banking on so many things when April hit and envisioning all of the things I would do with my friends, the memories lasting a lifetime. Never would I have imagined this would happen, that I would never return to that environment where I knew where all of my friends were and what we were planning on doing that day. I wish I had urged my friends to eat and explore the places I had never been to sooner, and cherished the times I was laughing and feeling care-free a little more. I wish I had spent more time with my roommates and planned more socials with the organizations I was a part of. Moving forward in life, I’m now naturally going to feel like the environment I have created for myself could slip through my fingers easily, and I know I’m never going to take the people and the memories I make for granted again. I’ll tell people what they mean to me more and push people to go out even if they’re not up for it. I won’t let myself feel so down about anything again. In a way, I’m happy this virus occurred when it did because I’m grateful to have learned this lesson early, right before the next big chapter begins and I create a whole new life for myself.

Be nice to yourself.

It’s easy at school to throw yourself into a project or activity, or a frivolous situation with friends, because there’s so much to distract yourself with at Penn State. You don’t really have time to stop and think about how you’re really doing and what you can improve on. After about two weeks at home, I realized I was checking in with myself constantly since I had nothing else to do. I was reflecting on situations and conversations, analyzing the opportunities I’ve had and how well I took them and ran with them. I would feel like I hadn’t done enough or still had resentment towards people/situations, and I felt myself slipping into a rut. I tried to snap out of it but with nothing to distract myself with, I knew I had to face it head on and genuinely work out this issue. I realized a lot of the negative feelings I was holding onto were because of insecurities with myself, and the only way to make the rumination go away was to start being more forgiving and kinder to myself. This time at home has definitely forced us all to be alone, with little to no distractions, stuck in our heads. It’s important to create a nice environment in your mind for yourself, because at the end of the day– and when you realize the state of your livelihood and social life is this fragile– that’s all you truly have.

Simplicity is bliss.

My schedule at school was overwhelming, and I thought I loved it. I was constantly running  around and hoping I would make the next obligation on time. You balance school, work, clubs/activities, health, and relationships in college and I don’t know if you ever truly get the hang of it (you kind of just accept it). Now that my crazy schedule is gone and I have maybe two things to do every day, I’ve learned to appreciate the simple things in life a lot more. I’m so grateful and satisfied with a simple cup of coffee, compared to when I used to run into Starbucks for an over-the-top latte and forget about it five minutes after finishing it. Going for walks is such a beautiful and peaceful thing to me now, compared to how I used to walk around campus nonstop with a million thoughts and to-do’s racing in my head. I enjoy gardening and watering plants, appreciating the process and the care that goes into it, which I would have literally never thought about doing before this. Eating dinner with family seems to be the most important thing in the world now, the perfect ending to a day full of nothing. I love painting and decorating and going for a run ten times more now. When you don’t have a million other responsibilities and worries on your mind, the simple things in life become so much sweeter, and I can’t help but think that this is how we were supposed to be living life in the first place. I wish we were all able to appreciate the little things as a nation, but maybe after experiencing something like this, we will now.