COVID-19 has been a hot topic among all age groups. The pandemic has affected jobs, school, relationships, and health. Today, I will be asking people of different age groups how COVID has affected their lives and how they’ve had to deal with the changes. All people interviewed are people that have been affected deeply and want to share their side of the story.

My first interview was with a high school student from Hillcrest High School, Kayla Garner. 

Deborah: “I’ll be asking how COVID-19  affects your life as a whole… and also how did it affect your chances of getting into college?” 

Kayla: “ At the beginning, COVD was very hard for me, but honestly, I needed that break. Of course, it was only supposed to last 2 weeks, but the longer it was… the better it got. Over quarantine, I spent more quality time with my family, worked out, started a business, became closer with God, and I learned to love myself more. I would say the pros about being in quarantine was definitely trying new things and being able to save money because there was nowhere to spend it LOL. On the other hand, the cons for me was definitely being in the house a lot and not being able to socialize with my friends in person and wearing masks everywhere, having to wait outside to get in stores because there was only a certain amount that could be in at a time. COVID actually made getting into college easier, there were a lot of fees & test scores waived because of Covid. So thank God, for that!” 

Deborah : “I agree with the social restrictions. I haven’t spent quality time with my friends since March and nine months is a long time to go without. Thank you for your participation.”

The second interview is Hillcrest High School graduate, Emaria Henderson who attends Southern University of Illinois Carbondale. 

Deborah: “I’ll be asking how did COVID affect your life as a whole and … also how did it affect your chances of getting into college? How have you handled it?”

Emaria: “It didn’t affect me as much as others & I’m definitely grateful for that. The only con of it is it kind of ruined my first semester as a college freshman. but I did get to spend more time with family & friends, and we/me handled it pretty well.” 

Deborah: “Do you think you would have done better in college if it weren’t for COVID?”

Emaria: “Definitely, it’s hard trying to learn a new course through a computer & the teachers aren’t really teaching; they are just trying to get it over with just like us.” 

Deborah: “ I understand that completely!! This is the most I’ve ever struggled with school. I used to be a great student. Now, it feels forced. Thank you for your participation!”

Finally, I interviewed a middle-aged female nurse who preferred anonymity.

Deborah: “I’ll be asking how COVID-19  affects your life as a whole and how have you handled things.” 

Interviewed: “COVID has affected my life in ways that are unimaginable. As a nurse, this is the most depressing time to be in. I’ve seen so much death and heartache that it makes me question if I’m in the right field of work. A pro about this is, it has forced me to think deeper about life and how I’ve been living it so far. I’ve also learned to appreciate the little things in life and be grateful for my loved ones. The cons are everything else. We can’t see, we can’t breathe, we can’t touch, because COVID has taken over our lives. It has turned us into robots. The only way I can go to work and get through my days is by having hope that things will get better.” 

Deborah: “Wow, that was very interesting. I knew it was hard for health care workers, but I can’t imagine how it feels to lose patients you’re supposed to take care of. Thank you for your participation and services.”

As you heard COVID has uprooted a lot of lives; we all have our personal opinion on it, but we never take the opportunity to hear other’s stories. For me, having COVID was hard, but it was nothing compared to the people’s pain who lost loved ones from it. I understand my story, and I want to understand others’ stories too. That’s why I wrote this article to bring awareness of how other people are affected.