After

Waking up, enjoying a “normal” day, but the definition of “normal” would quickly change. It was a few minutes before tip-off. While in a meeting, I was preparing to sneak glances at the game.

It was that particular moment when our world began to change, and how odd, that change would come due to an event in my city, a small big city in the middle of the country. But change it did, and changes that may remain.

I remember the shock and frantic texts being sent – an NBA game cancelled? Trump calling to shut the border for international travel?

By: MS

Corona in 25 Words

Getting tested is routine now.

Drive up, get swabbed, then go home.

Wait until the next morning — my results are ready.

Red font, not good.

By: Ava Hiser

Quarantine Life in 6 Words

Today was the same as yesterday.

By: Emily Martinez

Ramen

Last night I made some ramen, with toppings too. I boiled some water to make the noodles and two soft-boiled eggs. I marinated and cooked some chicken breasts. I chopped some green onion. I combined some seasoning in a bowl.

Then, I created my dish.

First, I added the noodles to the sauce and mixed them. Second, I placed the chicken on top of the noodles. Third, I added the rest of the toppings: the soft-boiled egg, corn, green onion, and sesame seeds.

I tried to make it look pretty like at the restaurants.

It wasn’t perfect, but it’ll do.

By: Katie Thorisch

Deadly Cleansing

I didn’t think it would be that bad. Nobody explained it to me.

As the fumes filled my mask, I felt the tears well up. The burning sensation filled my mouth. My nose dripped in solidarity. I felt the tears fall.

I couldn’t let any of the others see my pain. What would they think of me? How could they count on me to help them if they saw me this way?

Then, the pain went away, and I was left feeling refreshed and born anew. The stench of my past mistakes was washed away.

Damn, these mints are strong.

By: Caleb Pinson

2020

In January we saw the red flags but chose to ignore them.

February came and we pretended it wasn’t real until it was too close to ignore.

We tripped over March and all hell broke loose. Far worse before it got any better, but somehow it feels like we haven’t seen the worst yet.

We think we’re doing the best we can, but unfortunately, by the time it’s through with us, we will only have regrets in hindsight.

If only we knew how well we were hobbling ourselves. This year we stumbled upon a tragedy that we can’t stop living.

By: SV

A Long Winter

As Jacob left his house to pick up groceries for the first time that month, he noticed something was off. There were too many people out and about. Were we not in a global pandemic that had already claimed hundreds of thousands of lives?

Jacob asked himself why the bars were full and the shops packed to the brim.

He left the grocery store that day and took off his mask and gloves to spend yet another day at home, protecting others.

“Why?” he wondered. Do they not care about others like he did?

By: Adam Khan

Fed Up

As things got worse, the people grew more wary of their role in the lives of others. “Why should I halt my life so others can live out their own?”

What these people didn’t understand was how desperate the situation was. Hundreds of thousands of their fellow countrymen could be saved if the priorities of the group were placed above the priorities of individuals. Isn’t this the social contract they had fought for so desperately?

It was becoming more and more evident who was selfish and who cared about the most vulnerable members of society.

Which side were you on?

By: Adam Khan

We are Living Through the Future History Textbooks

2020 is the year we all expected greatness from. We wanted growth, joy, spontaneity, excitement, and purpose. Turns out, we got played.

Instead, we got: death, protests, confusion, anger, violence, and uncertainty.

With all the new, comes longing for the past.

“Let’s go back to the way things were.”

But isn’t that what got us here? Isn’t that how we arrived at this momentous year?

How do we ensure we do better as humans, as people? There is a large demand to return to normal.

But after this, do we even know what normal is? Would we even recognize it?

By: GWVT