As a kid, you watch movies and begin to have certain expectations for how your college life would be like – I was no exception to this aspiration. Never have I thought that this dream would be diminished by a viral disease that began on the other side of the world. My unconventional college experience began the moment when the WHO declared that coronavirus was officially a global pandemic. Suddenly, the events marking the end of my last year of high school were cancelled abruptly and final times spent with high school friends were limited. I stepped onto college campus for the first time with boxes of face masks and bottles of hand sanitizer in tow.
Now that I am starting my second semester of college, all of the disappointments that I felt about missing out on the cinematic college experience vanished. Coming back to Northeastern felt refreshing. Winter break brought me back to the time in March where everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. There was no sense of urgency or responsibility. I yearned for more things to do, other than quarantine baking and binge-watching shows in record time. At Northeastern, I can find events to participate in, and new people to meet. Whether they are online or in person, I embrace the feeling of just having something to do.
Although the college life I envisioned did not include hours of classes on Zoom or scheduling COVID tests every three days, I learned that college life is what I make of it. This upcoming semester, I signed up for more organizations, and even started a new intern position at the Asian American Center. I have come to the conclusion that I am someone who enjoys spending time accomplishing tasks with a purpose. Second semester came sooner than I realized, and pretty soon I will be moving on to my second year here at Northeastern. Time has sped up again now that I am back in Boston, and I want to make sure that I make the best of my time here.
