When it feels like the end of the world, there is some comfort in knowing you are not the only one dealing with significant changes to your circumstances. Though I know most people in my course have returned home and are dealing with the changes in their own way, sometimes it hasn’t entirely felt like the whole world is having a super difficult time transitioning. I have been in quarantine in my room (which I can’t leave except to use the bathroom) for a week now, and honestly, I’m going a bit stir crazy. I’ve had to adjust to a new sleep scheduling while also making sure I’m up early enough for my classes, if I need anything I have to text my mom, and being trapped in a room with limited outside influence has made it really difficult to think creatively. Basically, this whole transition period is not one that expected to be going through in the middle of the school year and I have felt like I just haven’t been handling it as well as I could be.
Of course, this isn’t really the case at all. In conversations with other classmates as well as observing on social media how different people are handling this strange new world we’re living in, it becomes more and more evident that everyone is having trouble adjusting. My course, for example, does require a lot of individual work, creativity, and motivation already but also has a lot of peer review and group work that can be a little difficult to navigate as everyone moves back home and has to figure out their new schedule. I know others whose courses are fuelled by exams and participation, and I can’t imagine how difficult that would be. With all this change going on, I’m really thankful people are being vocal about their experiences and talking about how change is effecting them to help make sure that even in this lonely period, we know we’re not truly alone.
The biggest reminder that this change is not something I am facing alone comes from Dazed Magazine’s “Class of Covid-19” IGTV video. The video focuses on students in different levels of education, from different backgrounds, and in different countries talking about how the sudden spread of Covid-19 has impacted their schooling experience and what they are able to do. Most of these students are studying something fashion related and no longer have the resources or space available to create content to the best of their ability. The students don’t only talk about how the virus has effected their schooling, but also how their mental health has taken a serious beating due to the stress and uncertainty of what this change means for their education. I have struggled with many similar questions and creative blocks and there is something very reassuring about other people highlighting such similar issues. The video ends on the words “Alone Together” which is a really helpful reminder that we are all experiencing this pandemic at the same time and that, in order to get through this, we need to be a positive community and support for everyone.
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Mia Leff 