There’s no doubt about it — campus looks extremely different this year.
Typically the first few weeks of classes would be filled with joyous reunions that always include hugs and tightly clinging to the friends you’ve spent months away from. Upperclassmen expect to return to a sense of comfort and familiarity — they know their way around campus, they know the faces they pass on the sidewalks and in the classrooms, they know the best meals in the cafeteria and the best places to sit and they know the best hangout spots in the little town of Wilmore. Freshmen and new students are pulled into social groups with open arms and quickly receive the knowledge that the returning students have to share.
This year, however, all expectations have been shattered. Reuniting embraces have been replaced by waves six feet apart and familiar smiling faces have been covered by cloth masks. Class sizes have been reduced by half in most cases, with desks separated by what feels like miles. New students are trying to find their place in the community among covered faces in the age of social distancing. The interior of just about every building on campus looks different, people look different, life itself looks different.
Succumbing to negativity in times of great change is easy. Anger, fear, anxiety and confusion are all appropriate responses to an unfamiliar situation. It would be all too easy — and comfortable — for us to revert to our old ways of life simply for familiarity’s sake.
Especially for upperclassmen, returning to campus gives the sense that life is back to normal and that the pandemic is clearing up. Since we’ve crawled out of isolation and back towards “normalcy,” it’s easy to forget that there is still a devastating virus that has ravaged both our country and the entire world.
Although it feels as if we’ve returned to the world we remember, things are not back to normal. Coronavirus is still spreading. For example, according to the CDC, there were 46,754 new cases reported in the United States on Aug. 22. Universities like the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Michigan State University made the switch to online-only instruction after many students tested positive during the first week of classes.
University students around the country should take these facts and events as a warning — if we don’t abide by the rules, we could all quickly end up staring at Zoom on our laptop screens from our childhood bedrooms.
Coronavirus policy should be widely and positively received because it is currently the sole thing that will allow us to stay on campus in physical classes with the people we love. Staying on campus really is as simple as wearing a mask and staying distanced. Changing the way you live is difficult, but it’s easy to make the change when you remember that making these slight adjustments will allow you to stay on campus in the midst of a pandemic and move closer to normalcy everyday.
We should consider ourselves blessed that we are even on campus and that the only changes we’ve had to make are wearing face coverings and practicing social distancing. Small adjustments to our actions and mindsets are what will get us through this difficult time. Positivity, respect for rules and hope for the future will carry us far and back to life as we want it to be.
