Since coming home to New Jersey, I have slowly adjusted to not being in Rome. As the weeks have gone by, I have felt sad about not being where I expected to be. For example, I was planning to attend Easter Sunday at the Vatican, and instead I was at home. (My parents and I did an egg hunt though, and it was glorious.)
Despite the sadness, I currently feel a lot better than when I first came home. My courses are wrapping up in a couple weeks, so I am in the final stretch of the semester. The upcoming summer contains many uncertainties, like if I will be able to have summer employment at the restaurant I worked at last year, but I am doing my best to focus on what I can control today.
When I am not doing school work, I can usually be found cooking dinner, reading a book, or watching movies. I have been cooking more than ever (see last blog post!), and it has proved to be quite the creative outlet. I am slowly pulling through Misery by Stephen King, and I just finishing catching up on the most recent season of Grey’s Anatomy. My parents and I play a lot of Scrabble. I am taking care of a growing collection of plants and will soon be propogating succulents. Before the local trails closed down, I also went on a lot of hikes and runs!
When I feel the need to socialize, I video chat my friends and sometimes even play games over video chat! I had a friend call me out of the blue yesterday, and we spent two hours talking and laughing. It felt wonderful to have a friend reach out just to talk because even though we young adults often use social media, sometimes we do not share real conversations unless in person. This time has definitely opened me up to more impromptu phone calls with friends!
I have also been spending a lot of time with my boyfriend, Ricky. We recently celebrated his birthday with a surprise ice cream cake and a movie night. Soon I will be starting a new oil painting of my boyfriend’s dog, Scrappy. In high school, I painted his other pup Scooby, so naturally I need to paint Scrappy now!
Although the past two months have been a bit more boring for me than I expected them to be, I am accepting the stay-at-home order as an opportunity to take a step back from life, breathe, relax (or at least try to), and reflect on the world. We are living through an unprecedented time in history, and it is hard to accept all of the chaos that the pandemic is causing.
So many people are suffering and dying. So many people are working hard to help other people. If all I have to help is stay home and take care of my family, I definitely have it far easier than many other Americans. I have a yard that I can walk around, I have a lake where I will eventually be able to take the boat out, and I have a roof over my head and an abundance of food. I might not have job security, but I do have a father who has been working from home, and I am working on my college education. I recognize my privilege to even be safe and alive right now. I am so grateful for all the good in my life, but it definitely took me a few weeks to feel such graciousness to its fullest extent. I have lost a lot, but I have not lost my health, my home, or my family.
Duquesne Study Abroad Rome 2020 