By Chloe Goode

The intrusion of Covid-19, otherwise known as the coronavirus, completely uprooted everyone’s daily routine. With schools and restaurants closed down and rules requiring masks and social distancing, no one was left unaffected. The world as we knew it had changed overnight leaving many people scrambling to adjust to the “new norm”.  

   While most students were ecstatic to be back in school, some had a few regrets about not using their free time to its full potential. Tori Balser, a sophomore at Ponte Vedra High School, regrets not spending her free time on keeping up with her studies. On the other hand, Reid Smith, a PVHS senior, had the complete opposite reaction quoting the movie We’re the Millers, “No regrets!” Graysen Gaskins, PVHS freshman, did everything she could to not be shut out from her friends, whether they hung out with masks and social distanced or constantly catching up over FaceTime. Cooper Hunt and Caden Kartzmark are both sixth graders at Alice B. Landrum Middle School who took a sillier approach to their time in quarantine. Both boys spent their time with their numerous neighbors swimming, playing video games, cooking, watching movies, and playing anything athletic whenever they could. They both agree they never want to go through this again due to “annoying” family members and lack of vacations.

   Maya Richards, a PVHS freshman, spent most of her waking hours at physical therapy due to the fact she had knee surgery on the first day of quarantine. Her family was very supportive and they spent plenty of time together. Maya is torn between online school, which she enjoys more than in school, and being able to see her friends every day. She would love it if she could do half in school and half online. Her only regret is not cleaning up her eating habits because, despite constantly working out, her diet makes it harder to be successful. She took advantage of quarantine to better her mental health and herself in general. In contrast, Jules Curry, a sophomore at Monarch High School in Louisville, Colorado, took advantage of the free time to relax and watch all her Netflix shows and movies. She is most happy about using the experience to gain a lot of self-confidence. Kelsey Leckner is a freshman at Virginia Tech who used her time in quarantine to its full potential. She always had something to do whether it was working out, trying new recipes, or simply relaxing and watching Netflix. Kelsey learned very quickly about independence and self-care since she was the only one home all day. However, it wasn’t all quite as easy going, she definitely prefers school in person and wishes she had used her time to relearn guitar. The worst part of quarantine was the effect it had on her family, with everything shutting down her mom lost her job.  

   In contrast, Paige Hulihan, PVHS junior, was perfectly happy to stay at home and perfect her basketball skills all day. She enjoyed the amount of quality time she got to spend with her family due to the lack of life’s usual busyness. Paige didn’t mind the added free time as she could also catch up on her Netflix series. With school back in session she doesn’t care if school continues or if she must go back to virtual learning.  

   Even though we are no longer quarantined, Covid-19 is still affecting us. Some students decided they couldn’t stay home any longer and went back to school while others are perfectly content learning virtually within their own households. Even with the ability to go to school, the changes are evident, all you have to do is look at the sea of faces covered in masks or the plastic dividers on the desks.