On March 13th at 11:15 AM, as I am sitting in my seventh period English class, I heard on the loudspeaker that we would be out for two weeks due to COVID-19. Two weeks turned into four. Four weeks turned into two months. And on May 1st, I heard Governor Cuomo on the television telling us that New York schools are going to be closed for the rest of the academic year. On Decision Day, a day meant for celebration and happiness, I was instead filled with sadness and disbelief, knowing that I would never step foot in my high school as a student ever again.

I look at my beautiful high school when I drive by and think I should be in there right now. I should be walking through those halls, going to class, laughing and smiling with my best friends. I have been going to school every day with some of my peers since 2006. These last 3 months may have been the very last 3 months I spent with them. Now it's gone.

If I can think back to my ninth grade self, all that I did was look forward to my senior year of high school. I would watch "High School Musical 3: Senior Year" on my living room couch and dream about that time of my life. Senior year is one of the most bittersweet times of our lives, and this is now being taken away from the class of 2020. I may never get to dance the night away at my senior prom. I may never get to wear my cap and gown. I may never get to be surrounded by all of my peers, throwing our caps in the air signifying that we made it.

From this horrible time, I have learned the importance of living in the now. I spent a lot of my high school days worrying about the future and I was so caught up in making sure my grades were the best they could be to help better my future. As much as grades are important, I lost sight of the fact that your high school days only happen once. You have one shot and it is up to you how you choose to spend it.

To the class of 2020, we may not have finished the way we all planned to. However, this time of distress and discomfort is only going to make us stronger in the end. As we move on in our lives, we should consider the lessons made from this time apart. Cherish every moment you have and make them count. You never know when your last of anything maybe, just as how we didn't know that March 13th was our last day of high school.

If I could go back to March 13th, 1:51 PM as I was walking to the senior lot, I'd tell myself to take one last look.