BY COURTNEY BRAVINDER
Not being able to finish out my senior year because of a world-wide pandemic are words no one was expecting to say in this lifetime. Everyone is saying how sad it is, and I have gotten so many apologies from people who have gone through all those senior year experiences and would hate to go through what I and the class of 2020 are going through right now. It is sad, and we’re allowed to be sad – that is the hardest for me – to allow myself to be sad. People are dying and losing their jobs, and I’m sad that I can’t spend my last few months of high school in school. But I’m allowed to be sad that the dress I bought for my senior year prom will never be worn. I’m allowed to be sad after playing a varsity sport all four years that I won’t have a senior night or even a season. I’m allowed to be sad I may not even be able to walk across that stage and get the diploma I have been waiting 13 years for. I’m allowed to be sad my senior year is being ripped away from me.
On a more positive note, this has truly brought many seniors around the world together because of the hardships we are now all going through as one. My family and I have played games and shared stories as we would before phones and the stresses of day to day life came over everyone. Knowing that anyone can get this virus makes it that much scarier and makes people love their families and those close to them that much more. Many look forward to going on senior field trips, or having class day to be recognized for their accomplishments, or even just saying goodbye to their favorite teachers who have helped them through their high school experience, it creates closure and now leaves a lot of uncertainty in the way this last year of high school will end.
The hardest part for me is being quarantined in my house doing online classes instead of being able to go out and make memories with my friends. Having to go to school through a drive-thru to receive my cap and gown and not even knowing if I will be able to put it on was probably one of the hardest days during all of this madness. School online has been difficult, to say the least. It’s hard to find motivation to do my work while lying in bed, but I know that teachers have put in a lot of time to make this experience easier on us. No one has gone through this before, so finding appropriate measures to make sure the people relying on school lunches and the kids who may not have access to computers are accommodated is something I am blown away by how much people in the community have come together to help those in need. Thankfully, I have decided to further my education at East Carolina University to major in nursing, but I know that many seniors may not have had the luxury of knowing and needed to visit the campus of the place they are going to spend their next four years and are now forced to make a decision based on online tours instead of actually experiencing it. I am currently in a class to get my CNA license to build a base for me to hopefully be a future nurse. Seeing all of the brave and dedicated souls risking their lives and health to help those struggling during this pandemic makes me that much more excited to be able to help down the road.
My dad has reminded me many times during this whole experience that in times of struggle, “everything happens for a reason,” though some days it may be very hard to find that reason, there is one. To all my fellow seniors I know it may be hard, but we were born into this world during the great tragedy of 9/11, and we are now finishing out our high school experience during a global pandemic so I know that we have the will power in us to finish this year no matter the circumstances. Always remember, it’s about the journey, not the destination. Stay senior strong.
