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Uncertainty
by Carter Brochu
April 16th, 2020
The year 2020 can be compared to a roller coaster at Six Flags, full of emotions, intense
rises, and stomach-churning drops. The social media app Instagram is where I spend the majority
of my free time. I would scroll through the many memes joking about World War 3, President
Trump, and just random things. My feed eventually started turning into jokes about this disease
called the “coronavirus”. There were memes of coronavirus with a lime, memes about the
Spanish Flu of 1918, and many more. Little did I know that something that seemed funny and
unreal would turn into perhaps the worst few months of my life.
I started the second semester of my Freshman year in bright spirits not realizing that it
would come to an end all so soon. I was just beginning to become close with my friends when
the jokes started to become real. January 21st is a day I will never forget as the first case is
confirmed in the US. The month of February was a month of uncertainty. A small increase in
cases and the President stated that it was under control, something the American public should
have never believed. By the end of the month the cases started to grow more and more and as
Spring Break was approaching people began to get worried. I remember sitting in my class and
seeing how other Massachusetts colleges were in discussion of going online for 3 weeks. Schools
in my home state of Vermont were in the same talks. I thought at the time that this was crazy and
probably a little unnecessary.
Two days before Springfield’s Spring Break, President Cooper discussed how Spring
Break would be an extra week as teachers could prepare to move online if necessary. I remember
thinking that it would only be for a week or two. Then colleges around Springfield started to
close for the semester and move online as central Mass. started to turn into one of the nation’s
hotspots. I didn’t think that when I said goodbye to my best friends on March, 13th it would be
my last time seeing them for a few months. I packed up the majority of my stuff as I felt it was a
good chance I would be home longer than 3 weeks or so. I was nervous about what was ahead
and I was in the realm of uncertainty about what happened and what could happen to my beloved
school of Springfield College.
The thought of online classes scared me as I am one that does better in the classroom
itself. I was loving the semester, field trips, in-depth history analysis, working with local schools,
it was an eye-opening time for me and the thought of that all being thrown away scared me. The
uncertainty only continued as Springfield eventually decided to close for the rest of the semester
as this became a common trend with colleges throughout the nation. Springfield moved all of the
classes online. I had teachers post video lectures and daily work, some teachers we still had to
meet with face to face online through Zoom. The transition didn’t feel right. A huge part of
learning that I enjoy is the classroom experience and this pandemic took that away.
The pandemic continues to grow in America and now there are talks of school delays in
the fall of 2020. It is a scary, uncertain time. I have not left my house in 4 weeks as it is too much
of a risk to go anywhere public and the state of Vermont, where I live, is urging the public to stay
inside. The news is full of sadness but people are trying to make the best of these times. I hope
that one day people will learn from this outbreak of COVID-19 and how the US handled it and
change the way we assess these issues in the future. I continue to live in times of uncertainty not
knowing when I can go and see my best friends again.
by Carter Brochu
April 16th, 2020
The year 2020 can be compared to a roller coaster at Six Flags, full of emotions, intense
rises, and stomach-churning drops. The social media app Instagram is where I spend the majority
of my free time. I would scroll through the many memes joking about World War 3, President
Trump, and just random things. My feed eventually started turning into jokes about this disease
called the “coronavirus”. There were memes of coronavirus with a lime, memes about the
Spanish Flu of 1918, and many more. Little did I know that something that seemed funny and
unreal would turn into perhaps the worst few months of my life.
I started the second semester of my Freshman year in bright spirits not realizing that it
would come to an end all so soon. I was just beginning to become close with my friends when
the jokes started to become real. January 21st is a day I will never forget as the first case is
confirmed in the US. The month of February was a month of uncertainty. A small increase in
cases and the President stated that it was under control, something the American public should
have never believed. By the end of the month the cases started to grow more and more and as
Spring Break was approaching people began to get worried. I remember sitting in my class and
seeing how other Massachusetts colleges were in discussion of going online for 3 weeks. Schools
in my home state of Vermont were in the same talks. I thought at the time that this was crazy and
probably a little unnecessary.
Two days before Springfield’s Spring Break, President Cooper discussed how Spring
Break would be an extra week as teachers could prepare to move online if necessary. I remember
thinking that it would only be for a week or two. Then colleges around Springfield started to
close for the semester and move online as central Mass. started to turn into one of the nation’s
hotspots. I didn’t think that when I said goodbye to my best friends on March, 13th it would be
my last time seeing them for a few months. I packed up the majority of my stuff as I felt it was a
good chance I would be home longer than 3 weeks or so. I was nervous about what was ahead
and I was in the realm of uncertainty about what happened and what could happen to my beloved
school of Springfield College.
The thought of online classes scared me as I am one that does better in the classroom
itself. I was loving the semester, field trips, in-depth history analysis, working with local schools,
it was an eye-opening time for me and the thought of that all being thrown away scared me. The
uncertainty only continued as Springfield eventually decided to close for the rest of the semester
as this became a common trend with colleges throughout the nation. Springfield moved all of the
classes online. I had teachers post video lectures and daily work, some teachers we still had to
meet with face to face online through Zoom. The transition didn’t feel right. A huge part of
learning that I enjoy is the classroom experience and this pandemic took that away.
The pandemic continues to grow in America and now there are talks of school delays in
the fall of 2020. It is a scary, uncertain time. I have not left my house in 4 weeks as it is too much
of a risk to go anywhere public and the state of Vermont, where I live, is urging the public to stay
inside. The news is full of sadness but people are trying to make the best of these times. I hope
that one day people will learn from this outbreak of COVID-19 and how the US handled it and
change the way we assess these issues in the future. I continue to live in times of uncertainty not
knowing when I can go and see my best friends again.