What has the best and worst part of quarantine been for you?

This proved to be a heavy question for students at Nonnewaug High School. After all, their teenage years have been spent in isolation. From cancelled events, to online school, to not being able to see friends or family for months, coming of age during the COVID-19 pandemic has been far from easy. This generation is living through history and NHS students want to leave their mark by getting candid about their experiences in quarantine. These are the voices of Nonnewaug:

Students found themselves looking back at what life was like “pre-COVID” and how drastically it changed during the quarantine period.

“It was March of 2020. Everything seemed normal. I’m sure everyone by now had an idea about what was going on in China, but no one knew how fast it would hit us. Everything seemed so normal the week school shut down. Sunday, March 8, 2020, I planned a birthday dinner at the hibachi place in Watertown for my friend. … It was great. We were all hanging out. Everything seemed so normal. Who knew that two days later would be my last day in the school? … One nice memory I remember having was when I went to ShopRite with my mom. I turned around and without thinking, I shouted my best friend’s name and ran up to her. It had been so long since we’d seen each other.”

— Melissa Barbino, junior

“I remember a week before everything happened someone came into my job wearing a mask, and I remember thinking how the person stood out and looked ridiculous for wearing a mask.”

— Anonymous, senior

“I think that the best part is hearing about all of the different ways that the wildlife and Earth has been healing from the lack of human behavior. The worst has definitely been the limits or stop to certain activities, like the week before our school shut down, I had my talent show and then the next day went prom dress shopping in New York City. I just remember there were two or three people I found there and went up to to compliment. Thinking back at it now, just being on the train there is pretty much a ‘no no,’ which is crazy to me.”

— Raine Wood, senior

“A few months into the pandemic, there had been nothing but bad news of event after event being canceled. The one thing I still had to look forward to was the summer camp I attend every year. I’ll never forget how I felt the moment we got the call that camp was cancelled as well. On a more positive note, I have grown tremendously as a person. I’ve realized so much about myself, about life and what’s important, and I’ve learned to appreciate everything I have.”

— A.G., junior

“I remember going to Wal-Mart the day before the “‘world shut down’.” The store was packed and no one was wearing masks, which seems so strange to me now. People were frantically filling their carts with groceries. I’ll never forget walking down the canned goods aisle and seeing the shelves empty. That’s when it hit me that something big was about to happen.”

— Anonymous, senior

“We went to Walmart almost right after they announced Covid existed and was a thing. We needed toilet paper and there was none — literally was zero — for almost a week before we could get it. So, we ended up buying it from Amazon, and it didn’t even get to us for almost three months. We sent an email requesting a refund and everything, and we ended up getting our basement full of like 60 rolls of toilet paper we never even needed.” 

— Shayne McBrien, junior

The pandemic disrupted everyone’s lives and sense of normalcy. Many struggled with the unexpected “shutdown” of their daily lives and the sudden shift into complete isolation.

“I’m sure I’m not the only one who over planned the entire year of 2020. 2020 just seemed like the perfect year, with Halloween on a Saturday and Cinco de Mayo on a Tuesday (Taco Tuesday). I recall telling my friends at the end of 2018 to relax in 2019 because 2020 was going to be my year. Of course, the majority of my plans were crushed because of quarantine.”

— Melissa Barbino, junior

“The pandemic has led me to miss out on some special, once-in-a-lifetime experiences. One of these included the 93rd National FFA Convention. I was able to go last year and it was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. I had made so many memories. I was really upset when Nationals was turned virtual this year, especially because one of the best parts of the convention is meeting people from all around the country. But I’m glad they were able to offer an alternative instead of canceling it altogether.”

— Camryn Sudimick, junior

The pandemic took a major toll on people’s health – both physically and mentally. 

“My depression peaked, and I could consider that both good and bad. For the most part it was bad because I almost made a decision that would have affected everyone that ever cared for me in a very negative way. When I was in that state of mind, I did worry and/or affect almost all of the people I have or have had a relationship with. The good thing, however, is that I always had depression and anxiety, but if not for quarantine I would have never known or taken steps to help my mental health issues, and it could have affected me in a much worse way long term.”

— Anonymous, junior

“Worst: my anxiety disorder spiraled out of control and turned into health anxiety as well. Best: I became closer to my family and found other ways to make me happy rather than being with friends. I also was way more active in the outdoors.”

— I.C., senior

“The best part has been being able to spend more time with myself and relax in my house. The worst part has been constantly worrying about the health of myself and my family and friends.”

— Emily L., sophomore

“The worst was being worried about my health, because others don’t care about common practices such as mask wearing and distancing.”

— Mya Julian, senior

“The worst part has been the uncertainty of when we will get back to our normal lives, or if we will ever get back to what our lives used to be.”

— Avalon Schnelker, sophomore

Online school had its ups and downs.

“The best part for me has to be, at least at the start of this year, having more time and freedom for working on assignments, which let me decide which classes required more attention or time at a specific moment. Along with that though, especially more recently, that has caused stress since as workloads increase or topics get harder, I’ve had a harder time managing time.”

— Anonymous, junior

“I fully enjoy online learning, it gives me a safe space to work without all of my classmates chatting around me. The worst of it all was being isolated at home, even during breaks and weekends.”

— A.R.K., senior

“The best part of quarantine was/is having some relaxation time and not having to leave the house because I do online school. The worst part is probably not being able to really see my family and friends as much as I would like to.”
— Lauralee Pelletier, senior

“The best part of quarantine has been going on walks around the town all the time because I can explore new places and get exercise. The worst part is being trapped in the house with a ton of homework.”

— Sarah, sophomore

“The best part has been the extra sleep. Being an ag kid means [an] extra two hours of sleep [which I normally] would have spent on the bus. The worst parts have been: no sports, isolation, the bad internet making school more stressful, feeling disconnected from school, feeling you have to teach yourself because teachers aren’t able to connect with internet issues, the thought that you never know when you’ll be told, ‘Sorry, you have to leave school and don’t come back for two weeks,’ … and the way school has become just getting it done and not actually learning it. The other worst part is that teachers have the nerve to tell us, ‘We were on unit five last year at this time and we are only on unit two. This is ridiculous. You need to work faster.’ This probably won’t be published, but it needs to be heard.” 

— M.O., sophomore

It was difficult to stay in touch and maintain friendships. 

“The best — I got to become closer with one of my friends as well as leave a really toxic person who dictated my happiness too much. The worst — I lost a lot of other friends due to not having contacts for them or just not talking to them as much.”

— Anonymous, junior

“The best was that I was able to spend hours with my current best friend playing random obscure video games we found. Although, there were also a lot of friends that I lost due to not having contact info for them or just simply losing touch due to the separation.”

— Anonymous, junior

However, being stuck at home allowed people to strengthen their relationships with their immediate family.

“The best part was being around my family more. And the worst part was not being able to see my friends.”

— Jamie Paige, sophomore

“Best: It allowed me to try new things, and I was able to be with my sisters who would normally be away at college. Worst: Not being able to see my friends or finish the school year with all the things that were planned.”

— Courtney Anderson, junior

“The best part of this has been being able to strengthen my bond with my mother as we both push and keep working to keep our current lifestyle, even through a couple of bumps that we have had to face. The downside has been the isolation [and] not being able to see other people. (I have no siblings.) It has been challenging to keep myself moving forward, but I have and with it I have gained new interests and have started multiple projects.”

— Avalon Schnelker, sophomore

The pandemic motivated students to lend a helping hand in the community.

“The best part had to be distributing milk through the 4-H to the local food pantries and helping others who need it.”

— C.L.C., senior

It also allowed them to discover more about themselves and try new things.

“The best part of quarantine for me was getting to focus on myself more, and the worst part was just about everything else.”

— Mackenzie Pfahl, sophomore

“The best part of quarantine was finding out who I really am as a person without the distractions of school, sports, and jobs being in the way. Finding some new hidden talents over the time. I found out that I can do graphic design really well! Some of the worst parts of my quarantine was the constant lonely and fearful feeling I had. I was always so nervous about my family or friends getting sick and even myself. Then being home all the time and not leaving the house was extremely restricting. It made me appreciate time with my friends and family more, because I had taken it for granted.”

— Kailey Moore, sophomore

“The best part about quarantine was the opportunity to slow down our lives and take time to care for ourselves. Before Covid and even now again, I am constantly running around and don’t have any down time. The worst part about quarantine was the complete isolation and lack of conversation with others.”

— Chris Stowell, senior

“The best part of quarantine was discovering myself and things about myself. I think being in quarantine for so long alone has boosted my self understanding and has made me appreciate everything that I couldn’t have or do. The worst part of quarantine was being away from my friends and loved ones.”

— A.W., sophomore

“I was able to work on myself and gain more confidence. But it was also really draining not being able to do a lot or see many people.”

— Anonymous, junior

“I remember sitting in my room and I was doing nothing, absolutely nothing. Something hit me, about how life seemed to always move, like a never-ending ocean and if you didn’t move with it, it would drag you along in the current and possibly drown you. I felt that a lot about life, being dragged around by the current. But for the first time, I was just floating, letting time pass through me; it seemed it wasn’t moving as fast, or more like I wasn’t trying to find a gasp of air after waves were constantly hitting me. I had time to finally self-reflect and work on myself, and see things through a perspective that was always closed off to me.”

— A.H., senior

“Probably the best part of quarantine was me learning new things. I memorized 100 digits of pi, I broke my Rubik’s cube personal best, and I have gotten closer with my family. Probably the worst part of quarantine was probably arguing with my family a lot, being under the same roof for a while can kind of be a strain on our relationships.”

— Mick D., freshman

“The best was learning how to make music. The worst part was the fact that I was stuck inside.”

— Anthony George, senior

“Over the past year I was able to pick up a lot of hobbies I’d wanted to try for a while; I learned to knit, crochet, I sewed a bit, I learned to make lasagna, and bread, I grew cat grass and other plants, and learned how to properly care for them. I was able to learn a bunch of new and fun skills, but I also learned how important it is for me to be able to see people in person and how important getting out of my house is.”

— G.L., junior

Overall, this year has led people to realize what is truly important in life and develop a new appreciation for the things they took for granted before.

“The best part of quarantine was how it taught me how much I take for granted, like seeing my friends and family, a thing I did everyday before Covid. It all changed quickly to seeing them through a screen, and showed me to enjoy every second with them and really take it in.”

— Jacob Marques, junior