People are getting vaccinated, classes are coming to an end and the weather is getting warmer. For the first time in a long time, things seem to be changing for the better.
But since this time two years ago, everything has changed. Friends have been gained and lost, and our education has shifted online. For many incoming sophomores and first-year students, this fall will mark their first time on campus. For many others, myself included, it will be the first time in a while.
As we move back to Chapel Hill for a close-to-normal semester, it will be unlike any semester prior — we must relearn what it means to be a student and a social person. In the past year, nearly every aspect of our lives has been redefined, from hobbies to academics to relationships.
Taking courses online has been a struggle — and understandably so. Nearly two classes of students coming to campus in the fall will likely have never sat in a lecture hall before. Learning over Zoom has made us think critically about how we work, how we socialize with our peers and professors and our academic goals.
Digital learning has been like hitting a wall, and the shift back to in-person learning will likely be a similar hurdle.
The pandemic has also redefined our pastimes. What used to be social afternoons on Franklin Street with friends or sunny days on the quad is now a lot more time spent alone. We’ve taken up hobbies — writing, knitting, professional Netflix marathoning — and learned to be more comfortable alone.
Some of our relationships have suffered as a consequence. Whether it’s because we grew apart with time or because of the strain COVID-19 has placed on relationships, friends have been lost over the last year. Similarly, the digital age tools of Zoom University and GroupMe chats have allowed us to connect with new people, in ways we would have never expected.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, our mindsets have changed. The pandemic has meant that our lives have been reinvented, and the way we view the world and our relationships has changed with it. I’m definitely not the person I was a year ago, and I’ve learned to take comfort in that.
Rarely are we given opportunities to start fresh — to meet new people, break out of old habits and explore new interests. With all of the turmoil and changes of the last year, returning to campus in the fall is likely that opportunity.
