Hi. My name is Ethan, and I am a senior at Rock Island High School in the year 2020. I’m writing this on my computer at home, while the COVID-19 quarantine is still going on. This has been a weird year, and there have been many societal problems that have arisen through the difficult times that we’ve been going through. 

I was always told in past years that one day, there would be some big event that would change not only my life, but the lives of my friends and family as well. For my parents, it was 9/11, and at this point in my life, it is COVID-19. It’s hard to imagine leaving school for spring break and never coming back, leaving online classes to be the only remnant of what used to be your day-to-day life. In these times, for many students (including me) motivation is hard. Hell, I’ve slacked off in most of my classes. However, for me, this time away from school has been a wonderful opportunity to learn some new skills, without school to take up all my time. For me, I’ve started to learn how to code for video games, and I’ve also started to create music. 

I’m not going to let this drag on, because if I know high school students, they don’t like long papers that drag on forever. So I’ll leave you with a quick message: don’t take your freedom for granted like most of us have. Realize that one event can take away your friends and family in an instant, and leave you at home for two months without seeing anyone. Cherish the time you have with your loved ones while you have it.