Having to stay inside for this amount of time has been getting harder lately and has made me realize how I have taken time with my friends for granted. Although I miss my friends and being able to talk with people who are not my family, I have been able do things that I usually can’t because of the free time we have now. I can catch up on shows, work out more often, draw, and spend more time with my siblings. The biggest drawback is all the senior events that have to be cancelled and postponed; we can’t help but be upset about this, even when there is nothing we can do about this virus. Online schooling has been both helpful and hard. I get to decide when I want to do my work, but sometimes it’s hard to motivate myself to do it all. Communicating with our teachers also seems hard with the constant updates about further school closure due to Covid-19.
I spoke with some other students at Washington about this ongoing issue. Isabella Kinser is a senior at Washington High School. She says, “I hate it. I never thought I would miss school this much. I really want to go back to school. I am missing my senior activities and we are not even sure we will have a graduation ceremony. I am pretty depressed, online school is terrible, and I am barely doing any work. I hate how the future is so uncertain.”
Briana Padilla says, “During this period, it is difficult to stay focused on school assignments. Not only do we have to keep up with our assignments, but we are also having to do so in different environments. I have three siblings, two of whom are also in school. We have to be mindful with each other when we join online lectures, and this can be difficult. At the moment, I rely a lot on Google to complete my assignments, but Chrome shuts down sometimes which makes me lose work that I do for other classes (Yearbook). Since many events have been canceled or postponed, I find myself inconvenienced by this. I understand the gravity of this pandemic, but knowing that it can affect our graduation makes me feel quite upset. We have all been working for years to graduate, and walking that stage is part of many people’s dreams. Many people have criticized people who are buying items in bulk, and I have to partially disagree with this. Buying items in bulk should mean that you go outside less. I’ve heard a lot of opinions about the lack of toilet paper, but not many people have mentioned the lack of feminine products.”
This reporter graduated in 2020.
Neha Banga is a senior at Washington High school who grew up in Fremont, California. This is Banga’s first year at the Hatchet. She enjoys writing on the features page and the opinions section. She is a martial artist who has been training for 11 years. She plans to open a martial arts school as a head instructor.