OPINION: DID QUARANTINE MAKE US MORE COMFORTABLE IN OUR ISOLATION ???

Because of COVID-19, the world shut down. Many students, like myself, had to finish our semesters online, diminishing face-to-face contact with our peers and professors. Many people had to start working remotely. There were several furloughs, lay-offs, and shut-downs of businesses. In addition to that, there were curfews, face-covering and social-distancing mandates, because of the risk involved of getting infected by the virus. This would cause a lot of isolation. 

I remember I was in my Medieval Lit Seminar class at Rutgers, during my senior year, when we all got the email that our university would be temporarily closing because of COVID-19 outbreaks. Me and my peers were excited by this. I have a Snapchat video of everyone in the classroom cheering and dancing. Our professor even let us leave class early that day. It was the week before spring break, and according to the e-mail, we would be getting an extra week off. Good news for us or so we thought.

I did not know that would be the last day I would ever be on campus as an undergraduate. It was a normal spring’s day, the semester was over in about a month, and we were all just looking forward to the end. 

With all of that being said, I was not sure how I would deal with the news that I would be finishing my senior year, online. Being that I am at heart, a home-body(who also likes to go out occasionally!!!), it was not depressing or strangulating, but it did feel overwhelming, after about two weeks into the online process. It was a lot of readings, discussions boards, zoom meetings, etc and while it was cool to approach learning differently, it proved to also be mentally exhausting. It made me realize how valuable in-person learning was, where you get to see, listen, and interact with your professors and peers. I realized how much I took for granted, in-person education! I missed taking the bus to campus and just connecting with my friends in class, and even seeing my professors and it is crazy to think that I found myself getting tired or annoyed with taking the bus and going to class right before quarantine started. A very eye-opening experience. 

On the other hand, I did enjoy sleeping in more, having more time to study and complete my assignments, being able to be in the comfort of my home, seeing my family more, and just not being as stressed. At the time, I was working in retail AND going to school, so it was definitely a relief to not be rushing and worrying about getting papers done at 4 A.M. ! Not to mention, my retail job closed for about three months because it was not considered essential, which also meant more freedom/ home-time for me. There is just something about being home, that does not compare to being anywhere else. It was a much needed break and sigh of relief. But did it have too much of an effect on me???

I spent 2020 and a lot of 2021 in my house. I do not consider myself someone who needs to be outside all of the time, because I am introverted, but I will make the effort to do so, because going out sometimes is just as important as knowing when to stay in. Because I took COVID-19 really seriously, I did not want to go out with friends or be in social gatherings, at least until I got vaccinated, which happened around May of 2021. My life pretty much consisted of me going to work and back home, before vaccination. Of course, I still went out to do errands, shopping, and church when the building did re-open permanently, but that was really it. It did feel depressing at times, because I was in this routine, and nothing was changing. On a positive note, this allowed me to learn to be content and patient, even if I was not living the life I desired, because of different underlying factors. Bottom line: ya girl was not outside a lot for over a year.

I feel that since my personality is already introverted and I like to be home and because of quarantine and COVID-19, where we were required to stay away from others(which I did not hate), I sometimes wonder if it made me, and others similar to me, more comfortable in our comfort of not being in a rush to go outside and socialize and just staying solo. Pre-COVID, we HAD to go to school, work, and other obligations, which would force us to fight off some of the comfort, but there we were, in a pandemic, living the dream of having half of our faces covered, no attention on us, no pressure to go out, living our best solo lives. A dream for an introvert!

I remember finally going out on a few adventures during the summer, where I was surrounded by large crowds of people again, and took the train and subway. It was my first time taking public transportation after about a year and a few months and it felt a bit weird. It felt like a life I once knew, but had vanished for a while. Feelings that I would have during my commuter days in college, rushed back within my conscience. Sweat dripping down my sides, the weight of my belongings on my back, looks of strangers, small pinches of pain on my feet. A life I had not been acquainted with for some time. 

I thought it would have felt easier, but there was a sourness, a bitter taste. I felt different. Maybe it was the pull of leaving what I considered my safe haven for a long period of time. Maybe I forgot, after being confined, what it felt like to be in a world with many others. Maybe this was my wake-up call. 

Even in the few instances, where I took off my mask publicly, I felt exposed. I felt a little self-conscious. People are SEEING me! AHHHH! What makes this crazy is I remember when I first started wearing masks, and how it felt so uncomfortable, different, and weird, and here I was, a year and a few months later, feeling weird WITHOUT it. In these moments, I almost felt like I had to re-learn what life was like BEFORE quarantine and COVID-19 mandates. I felt like a frozen chicken that needed to thaw out. Am I alone here? Feelings of discomfort, a bit unease, and a hint of insecurity emerged, not the greatest feelings, but all in all, it just reinforced to me, “Maybe you just got too comfortable in your isolation and forgot about reality,” and that is okay. This is all a learning experience, and a consequence of a pandemic for not only me, but I am sure many others, and a part of growth and a bigger story.

I know some people who never want to return to work in-person and some who are eager to return to work. There are some, who want a balance of staying home and going to work, and some who maybe do not care. All in all, it is safe to say that this pandemic has shifted some of our priorities, and has made us realize many things about ourselves: some good, some bad. We are all coping in different ways, and just trying to make the best of our situations, and however way you choose to do that, is fine. I just hope whatever decisions you do make leads more to growth and less comfort 🙂