I got a text notification from GHC, on March 16, saying the college would temporarily suspend classes for a period of two weeks due to COVID-19.
As a student I was originally relieved and viewed this as a premature spring break filled with fun. Even though a free screening of “Just Mercy” that I was going to attend was canceled, I still, naively thought I would be able to go on adventures with my friends and have tales to share when classes resumed.
Another text update from the school said, “per Governor Kemp’s executive order on 3/16 all USG institutions, including GHC will be closed 3/18 to 3/31.” This led me to believe the school would be reopening.
Later that same day it was announced that all 26 colleges in the University System of Georgia would be moving to online courses for the remainder of the semester. All events and extracurricular activities were canceled or postponed. This came along with the news of Georgia residences daily being diagnosed and passing away from COVID-19.
It sunk in that this was real and serious. I had to take precautions. Finally waking up to reality, I began to ponder the fate of my education.
I am not a computer science major, but I will have to navigate technology to complete my classes. What about hanging with my friends? What will I do in my spare time?
Life as a young adult, during this pandemic, is forcing me to adjust to what is quickly becoming a technological world. When I went to the Academic Advising department and signed up for my last class at GHC via SCORE, I thought it would be daunting, but GHC made it easy for their students.
Instead of going to Walmart to buy an object, something I am fully accustomed to doing, I am ordering for delivery. I cannot inspect what I am buying or ask questions. I have to read reviews. At first I was worried I would not get what I ordered and was preparing to face a debacle. I ended up getting exactly what I requested, as if I had gone to the store after all.
Social media is a gift. My friend and I keep in touch by sharing memes via Facebook or Twitter, sending poems via Instagram or just chatting.
In my spare time, the quarantine has encouraged me to engage with my passions: writing and reading. I have even taken the liberty of trying to learn a language.
This has caused some personal reflection and for me to reevaluate myself, not only as a GHC student but as a young adult in general. I am not a medical expert, so I do not know when we will experience life as we once knew it, but I can advise us to be new, improved and ready versions of ourselves when that day arrives.
Until then, wash your hands and take care.