“what can we do about it?”

Growing up, I used to read plenty of books with various genres. My favorites were dystopian fiction which plays along the idea of an imagined state or society where there is great suffering or injustice. I find a lot of inconsistencies in these times, and they all fall along the lines of a dystopia. Take Delirium by Lauren Oliver, for example. In her novel, their deadly disease was love. The states deemed it so since everyone seemed to lose their minds once they felt attached to another being. It caused mental and physical pain, and to aid this, they came up with a vaccine that numbed you and basically made you a zombie. The youth known as “millennials” would be your everyday Lena Holloway considering (some of) our elders see problems and say, “that’s a shame” versus us who go, “what can we do about it?” You can read as many books and watch as many TV shows about what could happen, but you will never truly understand until you are in that situation yourself. That’s how I feel right now.

It has been four weeks since I’ve been quarantined from the COVID-19. It all feels very surreal. One part of me hates it. I miss my friends and family. I feel hatred towards those in political power that are slowly choosing to take action when things matter most. I feel hatred for those that are not taking our lives seriously as they pretend that this will all be over so soon. I’m tired of wearing pajamas all the time. I hate that the virus is hitting black and brown neighborhoods the most.

And then there’s another part of me that loves having to stay home. I love the quiet moments to myself. I love how I can do things on my own terms, when I want, how I want. I love that those that are essential workers are finally getting the recognition they deserve. I love that animals are finally feeling safe in their homes again without all of the cars and gas pollution. I spend most of my time doing homework, Netflix, practicing mindfulness and a little photography.