For the first time ever on a Monday morning, I didn’t feel anxious.

    In fact, I felt excited.

    I slept in late and turned off my alarm at 6:30 a.m. My eyes greeted the comfortable darkness outside the window nearly persuading me back to sleep once more. However, I resisted the temptation and gathered just enough motivation to quickly do my hair, wash my face and brush my teeth. I found this routine much easier than usual, but still battled for energy nonetheless.

   This is a major opportunity to catch up on sleep and hang out with my family. School starts late and ends early: it’s a dream come true. I enjoyed my large bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal for once. While still in my pajamas, I looked at my drooping bookbag and a wave of relief came over me as I realized it was the first day of remote schooling.

   Fast forward a few days, I’m starting to grasp the pros and the cons of online schooling.

   One major con to not having in-person schooling is losing the ability to see my friends and teachers. Yes, school can really stress me out sometimes, but seeing my favorite people every day really helped me cope. They remind me that stress, like many other challenges in life, is temporary. Although, I’m glad I can still contact my friends via text, nothing can match the power of face-to-face conversation.

  On a more positive note, as a sophomore, I won’t miss out on significant school events. Cotillion came and went, which was an absolute blast. I don’t have to worry about senior trips, senior prom, or graduation being canceled. However, it doesn’t negate the sympathy I feel for the devastated juniors and seniors who looked forward to fun events like these for the entire year, maybe even longer.

  An additional flaw of remote learn

ing is the lack of connectivity with the teacher.

I’m grateful the teacher is available if I should have any problems, but if I’m learning a new lesson, I don’t want

to rely on Internet Teachers. It loses a level of intimacy that can cripple comprehension due to students’ lack of experience with online learning. Furthermore, the lack of a teacher’s presence leads to a rise of online distractions.

  The structure school created allowed me to focus and excel on my work. Over the past few days, I’m noticing that I feel more lethargic than usual and feel my self-motivation slipping.

  Remote schooling does provide some resemblance of an in-person schooling structure. My teachers have the same expectations of students as if we were still in class. Additionally, they reassure their students and ensure their wellbeing.

  These expectations even extend to my extracurriculars. About an hour after school, I run in my neighborhood based on the workouts my track coach provided for me and my teammates to complete this week. These workouts force me to go outside and experience the beautiful weather: Bright sunshine that follows me as I race across the perfect, flat sidewalk, with my braids bouncing with every stride. Ironically, I see more families walking together in my neighborhood outside than I’ve ever seen since I moved to Jersey four years ago.

  All in all, I know remote schooling is not designed to last indefinitely. When that day comes, which I hope is sooner than later, part of me will dread it, but part of me will feel happy to know that the world has recovered from the pandemic.