Imagine this; you’re a freshman in high school, and you are living the life. You look in the future and wonder what your senior year will be like and what career path you will choose after high school. However, everything in the world changes and nothing goes right during your time as a senior. You wish things had gone differently and you would’ve had a normal senior year. It was always predicted that graduating with your class was supposed to be one of the best times of your life, but at the end of your senior year, you are left with your diploma and nothing to go along with it. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the class of 2021 has suffered some major losses when it comes to their senior year. Many events that were supposed to take place in the fall are currently trying to be rescheduled for the spring. One of the major events for a senior is homecoming. People look forward to spending their homecoming with their friends and making meaningful memories before everyone goes in their separate directions. However, SLHS seniors are not able to participate in any homecoming events until it is safe to gather in public groups. 

Being a senior during the pandemic isn’t the most ideal situation. Lots of events are cancelled and nothing is normal during this year. Many seniors are trying to look at the positive side of their current situation to try and make their senior year a better experience. 

Mikaila Borie commented, “This year has been different than most. It’s not ideal that my senior year is one that is in quarantine, but the senior class is doing their best to make the most of it. Of course, it sucks and I don’t wish this sort of thing on everyone, but I’m making the most of it and being as positive as I can be.”

Dilynn Everitt included, “Senior year is definitely not what I expected, but I’m trying to make the best of it. I was excited for all of the fun things seniors are supposed to go through, and a lot of them ended up getting cancelled. I’m still trying to stay positive but so far, I’m not enjoying my senior year unfortunately.”

Throughout high school, students look forward to all of the activities they are able to participate in including sporting events, homecoming, assemblies, and many other things. None of these activities are available right now and may not be available until sometime next year. 

However, even though SLHS’ class of 2021 is suffering from the global pandemic, they wish nothing but the best for the class of 2022. As a senior, I can firmly say that I do not wish this upon anyone, and it definitely isn’t the senior year I imagined.

Keegan Honig added, “This is obviously not the senior year we all hoped for, and it’s disappointing to not have a lot of the fun things we all looked forward to. However, things could be a lot worse, and personally, I’m just thankful I was able to have my senior cross country season.”

Being a senior is one of the hardest things to process during this pandemic. I was looking forward to spending time with all of the people I love before we all go our separate ways. I’ve already committed to Ferris State University, and my best friend is going to Baker College, which is two hours away from each other. I wanted to be able to spend as much time with her as possible before we part. However, COVID-19 is making that impossible and nothing is going to be normal for a while. Even though this year sucks, I still manage to stay positive. I know that with all of the things going on, it could be a lot worse, and I’m just overall thankful to have been a part of such an amazing class for the past 13 years.