65 It was only supposed to be 2 weeks off

When news of Covid arrived, I was here in Ontario, Stoney Creek to be specific. I believe I was in my 3rd year of high school, and I was 17 years old. When the news of Covid was announced, I was in my biology class, and I remember them coming over the PA system to tell us we would just have two weeks off school- hence my title. We didn’t think much of it – we were rather excited to have an unexpected break from school – but surely enough the two weeks turned into months.

The actual lockdown process was gradual at first, everyone tiptoeing around the news and rather unsure of how to handle things. Some people started masking immediately, others waiting until it was made mandatory to do so. Eventually we did go into full lockdown: only essential services being open, limited contact and capacity, temperature checks when clocking in for work or entering stores and mandatory masking. At the time I was working at the bakery department in Fortino’s, so I was still able to work, just with new rules and precautions. Later in the year I was moved to the Pc Express department- grocery delivery, as the influx of orders skyrocketed with Covid and its demands. I think we remained in lockdown until the first vaccine came out, and even then, we were keeping an eye on temperatures and capacity limits. In terms of day-to-day changes, I became a collector of reusable facemasks, even learning how to make them myself to match outfits and bring some light back to the situation. Sanitizing just about anything I could as much as I could also became a staple in my routine. Safe to say, overall I was just more aware of my surroundings and actions. Anytime I wanted to hang out with friends and family it had to be done outside on the porch or driveway, and only if everyone was feeling okay still. 

The theme I have chosen to relate to my experience is secrecy. This isn’t something many people are aware of at all, and it’s one of the many things I hated about my Covid experience. At this point, the first vaccination had come out and everyone I knew was getting them. My friends often talked poorly of individuals who were opting out of the vaccination. I was always one to keep up with my immunizations, making sure I was safe but also because it was necessary for school. However, the issue I faced was because of my stepdad. He was a skeptic, and didn’t want any of us to be immunized, I however wanted to get the immunization to be safe. Ultimately, it was the pressure and judgement from friends that pushed me to finally get it done. In saying this, I was of age and had full capability of making my own decision, but I was afraid of the consequences I may have faced family-wise. My mom’s side of the family had no issue with the vaccination and was rather encouraging me to get it, especially considering my Nonna was high risk with all her complications. So, I went behind my stepdad’s back and got immunized. That was the first time I had “rebelled” and made a decision for myself, by myself. That seemed to be a common theme: Covid being a turning point for independence and new decisions. 

I feel like I could write a novel on all the events I missed, but the most notable one was my high school graduation. I finished my final years of high school in blended learning – switching back and forth between synchronous and asynchronous classes. I graduated in 2021, and I can’t remember what the rest of the world was like at that time, but I can remember all the graduating students waiting for the dreaded announcement as to how our graduation was going to be done. Unfortunately, we had a virtual graduation in which we were all at home watching a live stream. While it very much is and was a first-world situation, this was some of the worst news I had received in a while. This was a day that I dreamed of since I was a little kid, getting to wear the fancy cap and gown and walk down the stage alongside my classmates. I was particularly disappointed as well as I had worked extra hard to get my Special High Skills Major (SHSM) certification and had no one to share the great news with. Our school made the most out of the situation – they had staff drop off our lawn sign and some roses at our doors. While the gesture was nice, it wasn’t the same as getting the proper experience and acknowledgement that those prior received. I didn’t get to celebrate with my family much, just my parents and younger brothers. I went to visit my grandparents and Zia and Zio to take pictures with them, but I never truly got to celebrate. Although I didn’t get to experience walking down the stage with my friends, I had them over for dinner and a pool party after our virtual ceremony. I tried to make it a good time for everyone, with decorations and a mock tossing of our caps on the front lawn, but it just wasn’t the same. Safe to say it wasn’t at all the graduation little me had envisioned.