Hi my name is Kyla H. I'm 17 years old and I'm from NJ.
Some random things about me:
1. My dream job is to be a videographer.
2. My favorite author is Rainbow Rowell, and my favorite book is Fangirl.
3. I would love to visit Brazil during carnival season and go to the Amazon rainforest.
4. I am passionate about art because it is just a way to express yourself and you can do it anywhere.
5. Something I miss pre-quarantine is being able to go out to eat, hug my family and friends, and go to NYC and PA.
6. I am a part of MAC (minority achievement community) and the Infinite Step Team. I also worked at a tutoring center.
Quarantine has been a hell of a ride for me. I was very pessimistic leading up to March 13th thinking that we would be home for more than two weeks. I felt like the world was ending, therefore on the last day of school, I told my friends and teacher that I would see them in September. I was really enjoying online school at first because it gave me something to do, but as we had more time to do work my procrastination kicked in. I needed to have a schedule, but my schedule turned into watching tv and tik tok until the break of dawn. I am appreciative of how online school helped my GPA go up though. I did miss some aspects of school which I never thought I'd say.
During this time I have gotten closer to my family. Before this, my family saw each other in the morning and then again at dinner time because we all had busy schedules. This time has allowed us to come together and do more things together especially my younger sister and I. My sister and I have gotten closer through learning tik tok dances together, little dance parties, doing art, learning about our hair, and baking even though she does most of it. My extended family would have zoom calls on the weekends to check up on each other, and through that computer, it feels like we are all in the same room. I really appreciate this time because I am a rising senior which means I'll be going to college soon and won't be able to see my family as often.
I felt like I was going insane for a little while because the days started to blend and everything became boring. Somethings that did make me feel sane were art, music, and grocery store trips. Since I've had the time to get back into my art I have gone on many Target runs for supplies. Art keeps me centered and is even just a way to pass time. While I do my art music plays a crucial role. The type of music I'm losing kind of determines the type of art I do. There is so much music out there in the world. I am always finding new artists that are so great but never make it to mainstream music. I love almost every genre of music except country music ( sorry not sorry). The last thing that kept me sane was the grocery store. I hated going to the grocery store pre-quarantine because it was always cold and busy there. But now it’s my main source of outside time and a way to see other people. Being able to just walk around somewhere other than my house and neighborhood just feels great.
At the beginning of quarantine the only way I saw my friends was during birthday drive by’s. Now that we are hitting the summer months and things are slowly starting to open back up I am venturing outside. I’ve met up with some of my friends in the park and reconnected. I am the type of person that connects with people better in person so quarantine was hard for me in that aspect. My friends and I still text and call each other, but if I don't talk to my friends for two weeks it's not personal. I just need my space and I don't like forced conversations, especially not over text. I felt sometimes people tried to stay in touch but it was forced because there was nothing to talk about. But most of my friends are on the same wavelength as me, we can go weeks without talking and then pick up our friendship like we just talked yesterday and act like 3 weeks didn't go by without talking.
Quarantine became really hard after the public deaths of more black people at the hands of police officers. People in this town, state, and country really started to show their true colors. I was conflicted about going out to protest because corona is still out there. I eventually went out to a couple of protests to be a part of the movement. I feel as though I've become numb to how black people are treated in this country. The deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and many more hurts every time, but it's not surprising that it happened or how people reacted. When the protest started that wasn't surprising, but I was surprised how many other minorities and white people came out in support. It made me feel like this time will be different because some people are finally waking up to see what's been happening outside their bubble. As well as this generation wants change and will challenge what they believe is wrong. It did upset me that it became a social media to support the movement because it is so much more than that. This country going through this movement again right now is so important because we’ll be electing our next president soon, a person who can change things. It’s so important that we recognize the injustice in our system that we vote for people who could change things. It's not just the presidential vote that matters, who you vote as your sheriff, superintendent, your representatives that all matters because those people start the change.
I know quarantine was hard for a lot of people mentally and emotionally. The way I got through it was trying new things, not staying in bed all day, and not isolating myself. We are a generation that has access to anything we want to know at our fingertips. So use this time to learn something new and find a new passion. And remember that you will find something that you love and there are people out there supporting you, rooting for you to do your best, who love you so much. Never forget that the people who truly love you will be there for you.