COVID has affected us in so many different aspects and has changed everyone’s lives both in negative and positive ways. This pandemic has truly taught me to be more optimistic about the importance of family and community. As of Thanksgiving this year, I’d like to reflect on my health and how the COVID pandemic has improved since it first began. COVID has taken a toll on me in various ways like constantly having to wear my mask and social distance, feeling anxious about my loved ones, and being isolated from many people that I planned to meet.

When I first heard the news during school one day that we wouldn’t come to school for a whole week, I was really shocked and didn’t know how to feel. On one hand, I wouldn’t have to go to after school and school for a whole week, which meant I could sleep in. But on the other hand, I couldn’t believe that something called COVID was spreading worldwide, and I wouldn’t be able to see my friends and teachers. As I waited for the bell to dismiss us and hugged my friends goodbye, promising to see them in one week, I was completely unaware of the fate that would soon reveal itself within the next few weeks. 

These past few years have been so difficult, as we have faced many deaths and losses of people of all ages, each with their own dreams and potential, all cruelly swallowed up by COVID. As I think of COVID now, I’m so grateful and glad that my loved ones, family, and friends are still here, and my heart goes out to those hurting and grieving for their loved ones. I can only imagine the sorrow and pain they had to go through, even though they had taken it seriously and had worn their masks, and made sure to do everything they could to prevent getting COVID. It’s so heartbreaking to know how much another person must have suffered as a result of losing someone, then regretting and blaming themselves for it. 

Although I thought I wouldn’t get COVID, eventually I did. After getting this virus and recovering from it, I learned to be more appreciative and considerate of my health. I started eating more and paying more attention to my well-being, as well as making sure that my family was getting an adequate amount of sleep and water. COVID may not be over yet but the situation is so much less serious since the start of this pandemic and things have been getting better recently, and that’s made me incredibly happy to see things get back to normal and for others to be able to smile more and worry less. Many of us felt like COVID would never end, but after fighting through this endless battle, supporting each other, and doing everything we could to keep ourselves safe, we managed to become closer and closer to the end and see the light at the end of the tunnel, even if we’re not completely out of this chaos.

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