Pandemic comes down hard on college students
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Pandemic comes down hard on college students

We had to enjoy the freedom of being careless for one last time

Pandemic comes down hard on college students

New Delhi: College life is certainly a special time of an individual's lifetime. Unlike school life, college life offers different experience with new friends and more freedom. College life exposes us to whole new experiences which we only dream of while being in school. But what happens when it doesn't go according to our expectations? Yeah, I am talking about this godforsaken pandemic!

I remember we were just discussing our next day's semester exam and here I was seeing some of my classmates wearing masks but it was normal. I mean who thought that from the next day onwards our lives were going to completely change. The next day we got a circular about the complete shutdown of colleges.

Initially, it was okay with all the online classes and assignments but then boom! It’s been three semesters and I am going to graduate soon. I was just coming to terms with my new college life and it had just been a year. It was something I and many like me have dreamed about since our childhood. That complete freedom, outing with friends, bunking the classes while escaping through college projects was a way of life for the one year, but this pandemic really hit us hard. I am grateful that at least we are  safe and secure at our place. Our days might be stormy now but there is a ray of hope that it will be over soon.

“The final two years were supposed to be the best two years of our lives, where we had to enjoy the freedom of being careless for one last time. Those giggles in the corridors of our college, the gullible bunks, the impromptu cricket matches during class hours. Man, I miss  them so much!
Instead, here we are attending online classes and submitting  assignments. Whilst, we lost the essence of ourselves, the innocent kid in us that always wanted to enjoy life and try new things.
But can't complain, because we are the privileged ones. Because we can still see the sunrise and the sunset. Whereas many of us couldn't, not everyone's as privileged as us, so I make sure to thank God for this gift but at the end of the day, we still are human and we have to complain about our miseries which we face. But now I see a glimmer of hope, a hope that we can return to our lives again and all of us get to see the world again. As my favourite song says: Wish we could turn back time, to the good old days, when our mama put us to sleep, now we're just stressed out!,” said Ankit Singh, 22, a final year student of computer science in engineering.

“Here we are again, trapped inside due to the 2nd wave of this virus following the lockdown.
Being a college student, I and many like me have been residing in our homes since the first lockdown began. At first, it was a blessing as my college is far and I always wished for a long holiday like that. But how long could we go without any social engagement which used to be our part of life? I am seeing my 2 years of college life being sweeping in this lockdown trend and this is quite disappointing. Online classes are yet another headache. Lots of assignments to do. Now I realise going to college was much easier,” he said.

But seeing the condition of our country struggling, one can at least stay at home. I found my joy in games and was keeping in touch with friends via discord. This was a good time. Apart from this, I spent my time learning new skills. All of this time came out to be a new experience for me. Right now, I'm living in Uttarakhand. My family moved here seeing the surge in cases in Delhi. So my experience through all this was a mix of positive and negative aspects. As long as it doesn't affect our food, shelter and health, we should thank God for all we have,” said Shubhanker Negi, 21, a third-year student of Electronics and Communication in engineering.

“Being a media student, most of my college life pre-Covid was spent outside my home. Going on shoots and photo walks every other day was a compulsion. All this work and suddenly we had a vacation that stretched onto months. I kind of enjoyed the break at first, attending lectures from my bed, having the time to sort out my thoughts and not  treating my life like the wild monkey race it is. But out there, we were free. No matter how much I enjoyed the time by myself, I think the majority of students would agree with me when I say, we missed out on major memories we could have created with our friends. I understand, for my safety and everyone else's, I have to stay home but that doesn't make it any easier. And now with the second wave of the corona, times have gotten tougher. We have to keep the ones close to us safe. With so many people losing their loved ones to the pandemic, I have only one thing to say. Please stay inside your home. I want to be a free monkey!” says Kashika Manhas, a final year student of  Bachelors in Mass communication.

“Amidst pandemic, everyone's life has been affected. There were ups  and downs in our lives. Many of us have lost our loved ones. During this tough time, it is very difficult to keep calm and stay positive. Now I'm here to share my experience on how my life is changed in many ways during this lockdown. One great thing is that I get most of the  time to spend with my parents. Earlier I didn't get this amount of time with them. Also, I want to share one thing which is the most important. I tried to complete everything which I procrastinated due to laziness or maybe lack of time. Although these words are emphasising as if I made this goal to achieve but it was not like that. This happened because I was able to spend time with myself. So, I gradually discovered things that can be improved about myself. This was like a journey of  lots of experiences and realisations. Earlier my approach in life was to keep moving no matter what like any  other person wants,” said Neha Bisht, a final year student of computer science in engineering.

“Since no one wants to stop or want pauses in their lives. So in these tough times, I realised that we also need to learn how to keep calm if everything is wrong or not going according to us. I learnt what patience is. Patience is not just a quality of being able to control your emotions during tough times. But instead, it is an exercise of self-control that can be achieved with time. I was able to develop this quality by involving myself in spirituality. I found myself as a completely different person. Spirituality has its purity. I also encountered myself as a better version of myself. Now I don't  get afraid or anxious whenever any problem arises. Instead, I try to stay calm and handle it with a positive subconscious mind,” she added.

“I am just another teenager who is frustrated due to this pandemic situation. This pandemic has taken away 1.5 years of my college life from me. They were very crucial to me in every aspect whether it is academics or college life. On March 15, 2020, we were enjoying our college fest, and suddenly an order came that the fest should be over by today itself and the college will be closed for six days due to the covid situation. We were happy as we had exams from the very next day. So we broke away thinking that we will meet after six days, but nobody knew that this would happen and it would change our lives drastically. So now my room, dining room, drawing room and bedroom are my college. I am always in front of my laptop either attending lectures or hanging out with my friends. But I would say that all of us have learned a lot whether it is technology, life lessons, etc.” said Devam Shah, 20, a final year B.tech student.