Summary: The author reflects on their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and how it brought about unexpected positive changes in their life. They learned to value friendships, started writing and designing their own website, explored natural soap-making, overcame fears of navigating big buildings, and gained confidence working in groups.

Takeaways:

📌 COVID-19 can lead to unexpected positive changes in our lives.

📌 Use technology to stay connected with friends and loved ones.

📌 Take advantage of extra time at home to pursue creative interests.

📌 Prioritize self-care and explore new hobbies.

📌 Overcome fears by taking small, manageable steps.

📌 Embrace online learning opportunities to gain confidence and excel academically.

📌 Challenge yourself to participate actively in group discussions and share your ideas.

When There’s a Will, There’s a Way ...

After the first two weeks when we were at home with family, I realized how much I missed my friends, which was something that I never cared about until everything came to a squealing halt. One of the first things I did was talking on the phone. I barely even texted before then. My phone was only used for playing games. And now, we still make time to have weekly calls to catch up. None of this would have happened without COVID.

From Paper to Post ...

I started writing more with COVID. The pandemic gave me an opportunity to take a plane down memory lane and come back with a luggage of creative ideas. I learned how to start and design my own website, The Way I See It.

A Mover, Shaker and a Natural Soap-maker ...

I decided to take better care of my skin. I noticed that my excessive handwashing was leaving me with bumps. This gave me an opportunity to read the book on natural soap-making my mom gave me the Christmas before COVID and do research. (I forgot to mention, I love researching). Natural soap-making is fantastic; with a little help from Amazon deliveries and my mom helping me add lye to the soap, I took matters into my own hands. I even have the option to add essential oils (jasmine, lavender, rose or sweet orange were some of my favourites).

In Control of Moulding My Mind ...

Living with special needs, I was too nervous to transition from high school to college. I have always found navigating big parking lots intimidating. With the pandemic, everyone had to do school at home. I felt my fear of navigating through big buildings disappear. I was grateful for that. I learned how to schedule school and fun. I decided to take a program that was part-time (no pressure), and I loved it. I aced almost all of my courses, which made me feel capable of doing whatever I put my mind to.

Zoomed up Confidence ...

It’s a funny thing that even though I spent two years meeting on Zoom somehow, it led me to feel much more confident working in groups. Now that I am in in-person Drama and Social classes, it is amazing to realize how much more comfortable I am contributing to discussions. I used to feel uncertain about my contributions. Now I feel more relaxed and ready to share my ideas.