There are a lot of people who are worrying about everything that has been occurring. 

When watching tv, it is hard to have the news pop up at five o’clock and always start it off with how many people are dying from the virus. We are also hearing about the new cases that are in the counties, Pplus having the world news right after the local news, sharing how the country is hitting big numbers for cases and deaths. 

Knowing that we have no idea on when this virus will end and if it will ever end, plus our Governor, J.B. Pritzker now has made up five phases to reopening Illinois, is stressful. When there is a live for our state updates, I go and look at the comments section for a little bit because that is where everyone starts complaining about how other states are already opening back up and their numbers are rising. Our governor says how we need to work together to fight this curve. 

News is spreading a lot of things that are happening for this virus and it is making everyone freak out because they don’t know there are supplies needed for hospitals and some doctors have no idea on when the virus will calm down. Some places haven’t even hit their peak on when it is supposed to hit the hardest. 

With all of this happening, I cannot stay calm, as it is very stressful to know that life is going to be this way for a while.  With having our Governor not letting us basically do anything, I feel like if I took one step out of my house, I would be in big trouble. There are times where my mom is at work at home in our dining room. I would have to go run some errands for her or my grandma, and I feel like I should be escorted straight back home. People on social media are still posting about how they are hanging out with friends and it bothers me that they are not taking the precautions that J.B. Pritzker wants us to do. I know it is hard to not see your friends, but  a good way of keeping in touch is with friends over zoom, face time, and house party. There are a lot of different apps to use and it is just a better way instead of coming in contact with them. 

Staying at home is hard for me because being a teen who just got their license at the beginning of this school year, I want to go everywhere. I am a very active person and I am included in many things in and outside of school. Right now, I would be volunteering for the Autism Royal Ball Run, which is a huge fundraiser, where the money goes to families that have a kid with autism and they need help buying things.  Around this time, I would have been hopefully starting my first job at Hy-Vee. I would also be trying to find different ways to volunteer for Gigi’s Playhouse, which is a United States organization for children with Down Syndrome and it is a place where people are welcome.

With my license, I would be the one driving my friends around because they do not have licenses, or I would just be going over to their house and hang out with them. I would also be spending a bunch of my time at the bowling alley because I would like to improve my skills and approach. It is important to make my last year the best, and I hope to do a lot of great things with my team. I would be spending half of my day at the bowling alley. 

Nerve wracking, that is definitely how I would describe life right now because we have no idea what is going to happen with everything that is occurring. We don’t know if scientists and doctors are finding a vaccine for the virus. We have no idea if this will occur again next year and affect the class of 2021. It is all just a guessing game on when this will be over. With having one of my family members in an assistive living home, we have to find out what he needs and then bring him supplies for everything. Then my grandma lives in her own apartment, and there are times where we will bring her groceries and food. It is very hard to see her because we are being safe and taking precautions by social distancing.