Phase One Everyone! As glad as I am to see a (smallish) light at the end of the tunnel and am glad to see that we are making small steps to get to a Post Corona World. Unfortunately, some damage has been done by Rona and a lot of things have been cancelled and postponed. School’s are ending without a final school day, instead of enjoying that last walk out the gate, we simply turn off our Google Classroom notifications. Concerts and festivals are now delivered through live streams Parties and gatherings are through zoom calls. It can seem bleak.

For me, a lot of plans that I  made years and years ago for this summer were cancelled and although I understood fully that it was best for everyone, I still was really disheartened by the cancellation of the memories I was supposed to make. When talking to friends (over Zoom quiz, because I am a newly appointed quiz master), we all discussed things that we were sad to miss out on and how we got over it. The main thing I want to write is although you are disheartened, you need to hold onto hope. So, here are some things I have done over the last week or two, to give me a bit of hope and cheer me up.

Reminisce:

Although this is probably the hardest task to do when you are discouraged, It can also ground you a bit more. Have a look through your social media and photo albums and watch old videos you made with your friends or family. Think of how you got to those points , the journey you took to get to the place you were when that moment was captured. Be aware that although you may not be able to recreate it right now, you will make equally amazing memories soon. Listen to the songs you were obsessed with last summer. Remember where you were and who you were with when you first listened to these songs. I expanded the photo wall in my room with pictures just before we had to leave school and although it was hard at first to see all the smiling pictures of people who hadn’t a clue what was coming, it was a good time to be grateful for what I have right now. Also, what led me to get to the plans that were sadly cancelled. I found that being grateful and sentimental for what I had, have and was given the opportunity to do was really helpful.

The Bucket List:

I can sense that any of my close friends are sighing or laughing reading this bit. When my friends started to get really disheartened, I helped them (made them) write down everything they wanted to do when things calmed down. Who they wanted to see, where did they want to go, what did they want to see and do. I think (I hope) it was really helpful because it was something positive to look at in the hard times and instead of thinking about what they were missing, we started thinking about what we are going to do.

Staying in Touch:

The biggest thing I am missing right now is people, especially my best friends so a huge thing for me in lockdown was to make sure I stayed in contact with as many people as I could. My best friend and I have a scheduled weekly call where we just explode with anything and everything. However, even smaller tasks such as a quick text can help you feel more close to people you miss and also cheer them up too !

Make it a bit more interesting and get a couple of friends on a Zoom call for a quiz or a powerpoint night. This might sound boring or dull but honestly there are so many themes and challenges you could set that will have you cry laughing in no time.

I really hope this helped and that you know that you aren’t alone with feeling disappointed and disheartened. Hopefully we will all look back on this mad time in the future and see all the amazing memories we created afterwards.

Iona xox