March felt like a lifetime, summer seemed like a minute, blink and you missed October and suddenly it’s the end of December. This year has pulled heart strings and turned the world upside down. Looking back at the way life was last January, it’s hard to believe how far we have all come. 2020 completely zoomed by, and so did we. 

Three, two, one; happy new year! Circa January of 2020; the clock just struck 12 and it’s “our year.” Corona is still a beer and you only say zoom when you’re running through the halls to make it to your next class on time. After a long night spent with family and friends, hugging and togetherness, you go to sleep and dream of what things this new year will bring you.

February rolls around. While things are still normal, murmurs of the Coronavirus or COVID-19 catch your ear between fifth and sixth period. It can’t be that serious, right? Why are some kids wearing masks? I don’t need to worry, it’s only in China. On Feb. 8, the first American dies of COVID-19. By Feb 26, every continent except for Antarctica has confirmed cases of the Coronavirus. 

Retrospectively, March was the beginning of the end for us all. Cases in America began to rise and school was let out on Mar. 13 for two weeks. After those two weeks, we met our best friend: Zoom. “I was honestly excited about our two-week break. I didn’t think Corona would become what it has, and I thought it was just like an extra spring break,” junior Emily Levine said. 

Apr. 2 we began Zoom everything. The world shut down, and the word quarantine became a part of our vernacular. Hidden in our homes, Zoom calls and facetime were the closest thing we had to human connection. New to  Zoom’s technology, there were some rough patches in the beginning of this journey. “It felt very weird and uncomfortable. It’s really hard to have a connection with my teachers and especially in the beginning I felt very lonely,” senior Rozhin Fadae said.

Despite the disheartening state of the world, we did not lose sight of what was important to us. Even though staying home hindered social interaction, the environment was getting a break from constant abuse and our loved ones were safe. John Krasinski started his virtual talk show “Some good news,” and Zooming your friends was the newest way to pass time, that is, between Chloe Ting’s Youtube workouts. “My friends and I played a bunch of games over Zoom. It’s weird to think about how we never used Zoom before but it now is the center of all of our connections with people,” senior Ron Berlin said.

Despite the strange and common misconception that COVID-19 would simply “die in the summer heat,” the Coronavirus stuck with us through those hot and toasty months. Over the summer, Zoom wasn’t used as often because school wasn’t in session, though it aided student athletes who played fall sports, as they were able to attend summer training and practices from a distance. “Although I definitely would have liked it if we were in person for sports this year, strava [a team running app] provided a great opportunity to get to know the new runners and bond the past runners together and support each other,” sophomore Maya Gottesman said.

While so much has happened this year, it’s strange to think about how stagnant life has been at the same time. Although 2020 hasn’t been what we had hoped for by any means, perhaps it was the year we needed. A year of growth and discovery, change and adaptation. Hopefully, 2021 will be less gloomy and zoomy and more together and tangible. Until then, stay safe and enjoy this holiday season from a safe distance.