We never thought the time would come. After all of these years, complaining about waking up before the sun rose and trudging along to school, hiding yawns behind hands and bottles of coffee, we find ourselves at home. On a school day, with our parents and siblings home, and shops and malls closed. Not even our phones can offer pleasant distractions after a while. Classes are still moving forward (ranging from a lazy stroll in the park to breakneck speeds around race tracks).
I’ve written about what schools aren’t teaching us. In these weeks, we’ve learned a lot. We’ve learned things that we were never taught in school. I’ve summarized some of them below.
1. Schedules are important. As much as the school bell aggravates people (and how slowly class passes!), there is solace to be found in dependency. We don’t have to decide when to eat (quarrels amongst family members because adults eat at normal times, and we eat lunch for brunch) because everyone eats at the same time. We can’t choose not to go to class because there’s the threat of detention. We have to exercise because we have practice, and we have to sleep because there’s school the next day.
2. There are only so many TV shows and movies that we really wanted to see.
3. Having choices makes us feel richer than when we are stripped of these choices. Now that we can’t go anywhere, we want to walk around town, hang out with friends, have sleepovers, and more. But we’re now being told not to. If you still are, please comply with government guidelines. There are people in this town—in your families, in your friends’ families—whose lives may be at stake. Don’t indirectly cause problems.
4. Having food choices (and the ability to buy whatever you want, whenever you want it) is nice.
5. Having the house to yourself, some of your siblings and only a few other adults is nice. As annoying as they can be, it’s so much more aggravating when they’re all home and getting cranky.
6. How much time people spend talking to people they aren’t really close to about inconsequential school things.
7. How little you have to talk about at dinner now that you don’t leave the house.
8. How clean your room could be if you cleaned it every once in a while.
9. Just how long you can procrastinate not cleaning your room.
10. How important Wi-Fi is in our lives. And FaceTime.
11. How many extracurricular clubs you’ve been a part of.
12. Wishing we all have really cool hobbies. Then trying to learn a hobby before giving up.
13. How many people live in your neighborhood because now they all go out for walks in the afternoon.
14. How we kind of miss the banter and off-topic conversations we have in class.
15. Complaining about how much homework teachers assign—even more than if we were in school!
16. Remembering that tomorrow’s the weekend, so you don’t have to do it.
17. Questioning whether or not tomorrow is the weekend.
18. Realizing March went by really slow and really fast.
19. Realizing it is only April.
20. People talk a lot when you’re trying to work.
21. Being really bored and finding people to talk to. Even if they’re doing work.
22. Those early 2000s online games? Still, very good ways to pass the time.
23. Hey! You’re still alive! Stay positive.