On March 13,  2020 the senior class thought we were being saved from our “senioritis” when Dr. Jeremy Goins came on the announcements informing the school that the Corona-Norco School District would be closing until after spring break, which would have been April 6. Excitement filled classrooms, text messages expressing how grateful students were, and plans for the extended spring break were being made. Little did any of us seniors know that would be the last time we walked out of the gates of Eleanor Roosevelt High School as students. Smiles, cheers and hugs were exchanged as the rain poured down on the day we will never forget, Friday the 13.

Almost 6 weeks later, the senior class has had to deal with the cancellations of Prom, Powder Puff, Senior Luau, and even our Graduation commencement. I personally am not here to dwell on what has happened to the ERHS seniors, or even the nation’s senior class of 2020, but to encourage my fellow classmates to stay active, stay positive, and most of all, stay happy. So, here is how I have learned to stay not only busy, but most importantly safe and healthy.

Monday morning is planning day. Planning your days out and setting weekly goals can help your mind stay busy throughout this time, especially as a senior. For this first step, use a calendar on your cell phone or even a physical paper and pen to plan a week in your life as an at home senior.

Take this time to manifest how you want to come out of quarantine, whether it be healthier with a changed diet or a new skill under your belt, take the time to make some goals for yourself. Once you have these goals in mind, make a schedule that is achievable for you. Don’t forget to plan rewards for yourself throughout the week, you have made it through enough challenges since the quarantine has begun, so you deserve it!

Senior Skylar Swalm can agree with staying positive and says, “I’ve been coping by communicating with my friends and bringing up all the memories together from school and remembering all the good times!” Swalm adds, ” Since we got off I’ve been reading and sleeping a lot!” Along with reading and catching up on the sleep we wouldn’t have been able to get if we were in school, there are many things you can do while being at home. If you want to get more active, start by taking walks to clear your mind, then turn that walk into a jog and that jog into a run. You can turn the empty space in your house into a mini gym and utilize objects in your house to serve as exercise equipment. If you want to take the time to develop a new craft or hobby, take up cooking or baking, go through your closet and up-cycle old clothes, and look for something you have wanted to do but never seemed to have enough time to do it.

The hardest part for most of us is not being able to see family and friends, so if you are struggling with that, plan a “drive by and honk” for a friend’s birthday or even just to see their face. For seniors like Stevee Silva, it has given her the chance to spend more time with her mom. Silva says that going “from almost losing her a few years ago to being able to hangout and laugh all day is so much fun!” We may look at this time as a struggle and that we are stuck at home when in fact we are “safer at home”. If you are having a hard time seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, make a list of everything you are grateful for or even a list of plans for after quarantine. The more we stay home and respect the orders of our governor, the sooner we are all going to be riding in a car full of friends with the windows down and the sunlight coming in.

So it’s Sunday, the end of the week and in other words the end of the article. You have read through this which means you are minutes closer to the end of quarantine. Seniors, we got this, let’s take it day by day, throw ourselves a Prom or two and stay safe!