Being able to be adaptable is a good trait to have, especially in this ever-changing climate. Life doesn’t always go as planned, but we must learn to be flexible with what is going on around us. This week alone has showed me what adaptability means. As the COVID-19 virus is infecting thousands throughout the country and the world, precautionary measures are being taken. School has been changed from in person to online after spring break, leaving a lot of questions unanswered about what is to come. But not all crises are all bad.

Knowing that I get to be home for an extra two weeks after spring break is honestly a good thing. I won’t be living in a house with 50 other people who could possibly be infected. I will have time to see friends from home and spend time with my family. 

As I took a pause on this post to pack up the majority of my belongings, glad to be having a break from my 50 house mates, a lot has changed in the past four days. Now here I sit on St. Patrick’s Day, not on the beach but inside a house, not in a swimsuit but in sweats being relayed new information. We will no longer be returning to campus at all, we will be finishing out the semester fully online, from home. I will soon have to return to campus to collect the rest of my clothes and decorations, and everything else I was able to shove into that tiny two-person room.

I’m not going to lie; I was super excited to go home for three weeks and not have to deal with sharing a house with 50 others or walking around a campus fill of the sniffles or changing my outfit every 4 hours because the weather was constantly changing between every class. It is nice to have a break, but this morning finding out I was not going to be going back until the fall hit me hard. As much as I complain about college in general, it is home and it is where all my best friends are. One of my best friends is studying abroad in the fall (hopefully still) and I won’t see her until Christmas now.

But, while it truly does suck that I don’t get to see a majority of my friends until fall semester, I know that is it going to be okay. All of this will be actually, the virus, the closings, the changes. We must take everything one day at a time because life is constantly changing, especially right now. Who knows where we are going to be in two months, let alone two days? Things right now are moving so rapidly, and we need to strap in and be ready for the change.

We must be ready to adapt. That’s honestly the name of the game right now, adapting. While decisions are being made every day, we must take a deep breath and know that it will all be okay. It is easy to be upset and lash out when things are changing and we have no say in what happens to us, but we need to take the opposite approach. Being rude and sassy is going to get us nowhere, besides maybe further away from others. Love and kindness are the only thing that can draw us closer to one another, not hate and impoliteness. 

So, to the girl who is adapting, go you! Don’t let other people’s negativity draw you away from the light in your heart. Know that everything will turn out, that God does in fact have a plan for each one of us. He knows your heart and He knows how exactly to guide you. While you are learning to adapt, pray that God may lead you. Know that everyone is in the same boat as you, we are all just as confused about what is going to happen. Adapt with grace and a kind heart, show others compassion, and celebrate the little things during this time of change.