By Meghan Smith
After being sent home from McPherson College, life has not been the same. I was devastated when I received the news that classes would be moving online. I never really noticed how much I loved interacting with my professors, faculty and other students daily. I was so sad, because I knew that I would be missing out on such great classroom experiences, especially for my favorite class, gender communication with Becki Bowman. Even though the transition was hard, and is still hard, it made me so glad that I chose to come to McPherson College. Professors, faculty and staff worked tirelessly to move everything online, and they were always there to support me. MC really is a family.
While I have been doing classes online, I have also continued working because I have an essential job at the local grocery store. I work at Scott’s Hometown Foods in Lindsborg, Kan. I enjoy working there for the social interaction, and I love the people I work with. Since the stay at home order has been issued, life at Scott’s has changed for me and everyone there. The number of customers and how much they buy has increased exponentially. During the first week of spring break for MC students, I was working 30+ hours bagging groceries and stocking empty shelves. I was bagging one day for almost my full five-hour shift. I have spent many days in the last month working eight to nine hours straight. Although work and school have been exhausting, I am grateful to have somewhere to go and something to do, not every student has that right now. I would say that work has definitely helped me stay in a good state of mind.
Even though life has had even more challenges than usual and an influx of things to be sad about, I have tried to find some positives in all of the COVID-19 shenanigans. Since I am now staying at home, I have gotten to spend a lot more time with my family and my cat. I love my family, and when I went to college, I really missed them. Between talks in the morning before work or a family game night, having classes online has allowed me to have some much-needed family time. My dad has also loved having me home, giving him an excuse to fatten me up with homemade meals almost every night. Although no one’s situation is ideal at this point in time, I still urge readers to try and find some positives in their life, no matter how big or small. A few of my positives are time with my family and cat, finding a few minutes to read for pleasure, homemade meals, doing school when it works into my schedule, getting to sleep in my own bed and knowing that all my professors are working hard to help me be successful during this difficult time.
