Ever since the first US COVID-19 case appeared in Seattle, Washington, the virus has been spreading like wildfire. Recently, the coronavirus death toll has exceeded over 200,000 in the US. However, March is when it all started in the US. In March gyms, restaurants, and barber shops were shut down, grocery stores were cleared out, and schools pushed back their return dates and eventually switched to virtual learning.

The question some are asking is how the virus erupted like it did. It all started whenever a 55 year old man ate a bat soup, which the bat carried the coronavirus. Ever since, the virus has spread throughout the whole world. However, some believe that the virus cases skyrocketed in America because of President Donald Trump firing his federal health officials. They were fired due to them pushing for a more scientific way to formulate a cure, which Trump didn’t agree with. Trump wanted a “miracle cure” to be tested rigorously to find the cure.

Once the first COVID-19 case was detected in the US, families all over the nation immediately went to the grocery stores to supply all of their mandatory essentials to survive the virus. Many stores such as Walmart, Kroger, and Target were cleared out of a lot of supplies including water, toilet paper, and bread, supplies needed for families to survive in quarantine. All of the supplies were needed for families to self quarantine in their houses. Whilst in self-quarantine, there is only so much one can do without getting bored and sick of being stuck in the house all day. For Junior, Danielle Montgomery, self-quarantine was nothing more than a lost feeling for her.

“When I was forced to stay in the house, it was a feeling of ‘what do I do now?’ because as teenagers, we usually know what we want to do, but we cannot do that anymore. Therefore, it felt like I was stuck and I was just bored. I mean I was able to facetime my friends and get more connected socially, but overall, it was not the same as seeing them in person,” stated Montgomery.

From what kids thought would be just an extra week extension to their spring break turned into the transition into virtual learning. Some students found it helpful and more convenient and some students found it an opportunity to sleep in and slack off in their classes. For Junior, Vidal Gray, online school had its advantages and disadvantages.

“Online school had its benefits, because I was able to sleep in, I was able to do my work whenever, but still turn it in when it was due, and I enjoyed staying at home. However, I like having a social life, so it was different, because you can’t talk to people whenever you’re at home,” said Gray.

Being at home all the time and not being able to go out without the risk of catching the virus can take a toll on people. The self-quarantine and social distancing has affected some emotionally and mentally. People are not able to go out as much as they used to. Even those who do not like going out as much still miss the outside. Due to the inability of not being able to see her friends or venture out somewhere, Senior, Eriel Fields tells that losing some of her closest friends affected her deeply.

“The virus has affected me very emotionally, because I had so many friends before COVID-19 happened and after, I lost a lot of them. We are not as talking as much as we used to, we don’t see each other, and we do not have as much contact with each other. It is taking a toll on me, mentally,” said Fields.

Not only has the virus affected people mentally, but physically as well. There are new safety precautions that people have to take to be able to stay safe. Rules such as keeping a safe distance away, wearing a mask, and avoid physical contact as much as possible. For Junior, Diego Rubio, these safety precautions have affected his total way of living.

“Ever since COVID started and places started closing, we had many safety precautions that we had to follow. Precautions such as wearing a mask, staying six feet away, and avoiding physical contact. I would even try to avoid touching my family, because I was afraid of possibly obtaining the virus,” said Rubio.

COVID-19 has affected many lives and many families around the world. From March until now, the virus has hit harder than anybody ever expected. The only thing people can do is follow the safety precautions as followed and hope for the best in the near future.