By Colin, 20, New York
People often say that time flies by in the blink of an eye. This is true when we are racing against the clock to reach new heights in our lives, with so few waking hours in a day. However, today, and yesterday, and most likely tomorrow, nothing in my own life feels as urgent as it did. As a sophomore in college, I spend my days attending zoom classes and raiding the pantry in the kitchen with hopes that a brave member of my family ventured to the nearby stop shop to stock up on food for the week. Some days, I wish that each step I took counted as an hour in a day. Other days, I find myself more focused on learning a new song on the guitar than I ever have before. There are even times where the highlight of my day is walking to the end of the block - and back.
During these slow times, I find myself exploring more creative outlets. Just the other day I wrote a song that followed the beat of a wagon wheel, only the lyrics had to do with the coronavirus - very original, I know. I will admit, social media is a great source for inspiration. However much of a waste of time it may be, social media can reveal so many positive outlooks during this pandemic. When I look up from my phone, I have been dusting off old board games and putting not one, but multiple pieces of a puzzle together. The feeling of beating my sisters in monopoly is not one I thought I would feel again. Similarly, the pleasure of admiring a 1000 piece puzzle, that I helped create, simply would not cross my mind at any other time. These are the little things that keep my afloat.
As for my future, it feels as uncertain as it did a month ago. The feeling of not knowing where I will be in 10 years is as present today, as it was sitting on my college dorm room bed. I think it’s important for my generation to take each day one breath at a time and count our most fortunate blessings. We are young, we know how to use tik tok, and we are on this journey together. There will be a time in the recent future when the flood gates reopen and we see life in a more uniform perspective than ever before. It will be during this time where we take our biggest steps, speak our truest minds, and look back only to see the mass amounts of people we will bring with us.