This year has been incredibly difficult for a lot of us. As someone who graduated high school in 2020, I missed out on a lot of the “high school highlights” that I have been looking forward to since I was young. I lost my job opening, the school I wanted to attend and got accepted to was too expensive for us to afford, and I stopped being able to see my friends and family. And I’m not alone on this- many of us have lost our jobs and changed our school of choice because universities expect us to pay on campus fees from home. It’s been incredibly confusing, isolating, and has created a feeling of helplessness. But, while it has been a bit of a nightmare, I have been able to recognize the beauty I always missed inside of my windowless classrooms. I had the opportunity to watch the sun rise, set, and start over again. I’ve realized how truly beautiful the world is, and even though I feel isolated and truly alone, I’ve become appreciative of the air passing into my lungs. Every day I watch the sunset, and I know that what is happening is temporary. The seasons will change, a new day will come, and the flowers will bloom again. It’s okay to not be crushing your goals and reaching your potential, or be at your absolute lowest. You can exist between both worlds- recognizing the chaotic beauty of a dumpsterfire of a year.