Time, my most and least favorite word.
It’s been nearly a year since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic and schools started closing down, many began to work from home, and the toll of the disease began to rise. And as the days have numbered most, if not all, of us have become bored and worried as hell.
It’s easy to perceive the current state of our world as unreal, distorted, or falsified, so what can you do to help that?
A Day of Firsts.
Just to let you all know, I am neither a professional nor a wizard that knows all the answers to our problems, but I would like to share some tips and ideas that have helped me and others. Know that these tips may not magically work in one day, or a week, it takes time to get better and it takes a brave person to recognize that they want to make progress.
Starting off your day and Enjoying it
It’s normal for us to become happier over accomplishments than things we do daily, so how does one make accomplishments when we are stuck at home all day?
As cliché as it may seem, starting your day by just making your bed can set the tone for the rest of the day. Such a small accomplishment of keeping your room tidy can lead to better productivity for the entire day.
So now what? You don’t feel like reliving the same exhausting day after hours of classes, homework, and studying, but you also don’t want to strain your eyes any longer by watching Netflix on your computer. What will you do?
As unpopular as it may seem nowadays, reading a book always helps. Distract yourself from reality and get invested in a new story, you might even learn something helpful or gain a new perspective on a subject based on what you read!
A few short fun reads:
Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone
Genre: Young Adult/ Coming of Age
Follow the story of Samantha McAllister and her daily battle with keeping her OCD a secret, until she finds the “Poet Corner'' to help her embrace her differences with her newfound love of writing.
American Royals by Katherine McGee
Genre: Romance
An alternate world of American history, where we live under the rule of royal descendants of King George Washington. This book is set in four perspectives where we venture into the lives of “the Heir”, “the Spare”, “the Schemer”, and “the Commoner”, spilling the scandalous secrets of a picture perfect royal family.
Another way to take up some time in your day is to start a journal. It will be interesting to look back at your journal entries from a pandemic and observe how much your mindset has changed in the future. Check out my next article for some ideas on what to write about!
Treat yourself
Have a day to yourself and go out to buy your favorite ice cream or bag of chips. Go out on a walk so your face can get a fresh kiss of that spring sun. Exercising outside and taking in the sun will help you sleep better at night. Attend one of the yoga classes offered by CSULB’s Student Rec & Wellness Center offered through zoom (https://www.asirecreation.org/fitness/group-fitness). Listen to new music or make a playlist of your favorite, upbeat songs so that you can dance off in your room and celebrate yourself for being here right now.
Here are some favorite song recommendations that our team likes to listen to:
Adore you- Harry Styles
Where Have You Been- Rhianna
Stargazing - The Neighborhood
Feel So Close- Calvin Harris
American Boy- Estelle, Kanye West
Sweater Weather Remix- Ownboss, Double MZK
Gold Rush- Taylor Swift
Teach Me How To Love- Shawn Mendes
Sunflower- Rex Orange County
Supercuts- Jeremy Zucker
All I Need- Jacob Collier
Sunshine- Khai Dreams
Raspberry- Grouplove
Daft Pretty Boys- Bad Suns
Sweet Talk- Saint Motel
Staying connected
It’s more than likely that it’s been difficult to stay in touch with friends or make new friends during the pandemic. So what can you do to improve that?
Go old school and write letters to your friends!
It’s always exciting to receive a letter in the mail, so why not surprise a friend by catching up with
a random themed card?
Some Ideas: Write a joke, your favorite quote, a summary of your week or month, draw a picture,
or include some printed photos about what you’d wish you’d be doing with them right now or how
you feel.
Start sharing an art journal.
Buy a sketchbook from your local art/craft store and start exchanging it every two to three weeks
with a group of your friends or a group of your Instagram followers so that you can surprise
yourself with how much you’ve all completed by the end of this year.
A couple of ideas of what to fill it up with: Write poems, drawings/ paintings of your own, collages
of printed Pinterest photos, scribbles of how you currently feel, photos of yourself, and whoever
else is an illustrator/author of this art journal, pictures of your pets or celebrity crushes,
summaries of your favorite movies or memories, and the list goes on!
Join a sorority or Fraternity
This spring semester many sororities and fraternities are recruiting new members through
continuous open bidding (COB) and due to COVID the prices are cheaper, so it wouldn’t hurt to
spend a couple of bucks to meet a solid group of friends that you click with!
As I mentioned before, time can seem like a burden right now, but with time we can have things like self-improvement. If you still feel a little lost or confused after trying any of my recommendations, don’t fret because there are professionals here to help you from our campus like the Counseling and Psychological Services, which are absolutely free to any CSULB student (http://web.csulb.edu/divisions/students/caps/).
Don’t be shy, afraid, or embarrassed to reach out, everyone has something they’d like to improve on and it will never be a bad thing to receive some extra support.
I know that we may or may not be strangers dear readers, but I wish with all my heart that you take the time to take care of yourself and that you continue to improve yourself in the best way possible.
“You don’t have to see the whole staircase, you just need to take the first step.”
– Martin Luther King
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