The coronavirus pandemic, as well as the ongoing limitations in place across the country, is a confusing situation that continues to impact our lives. When school was announced to return, it was hard to predict the full impact the situation would have on my education, my mental health, and my high school experience. 

   I was worried that I’d be sitting in a classroom thousands of feet away from my friends, unable to talk and act as freely as I used to in a classroom. I was afraid I’d lose touch with some of my teachers because they don’t even know who I am with my mask on, and I’d still be in that weird funk from doing school work online all last year. It’s easy to say my head was full of the worst possibilities before going back to school and I almost wished it’d stay remote. 

   It hasn’t been the worst, though. I mean, who really understands how to deal with a situation like this that we’ve never had to deal with before? Yes, it still feels strange, but I believe that with time, everything will return to normal. Of course there’s some things in my everyday school life that I miss, but it’s just not realistic for me to expect those things right now. 

   Ideally, in the future I hope to say that I’m finally eating lunch with all of my friends everyday, instead of having to plan which days of the week I’ll be seeing them. And maybe I’ll even be able to see my teacher’s full face for the first time!