Only 20 minutes to sleep
But you dream of some epiphany
Just one single glimpse of relief
To make some sense of what you've seen
It is now July 2022, and we are over two years into a pandemic that was only supposed to last two weeks. As I reflect on the path these years have taken, I am overwhelmed with emotions, and most of them are negative. While I have the fun memories of whipped coffee, Marvel marathons, Zoom game nights, and more, I am overcome with emotion and sorrow thinking about all those that did not make it through the time. Not only is the institution of education changed forever, so are the lives of everyone in some way or another. We so often are stuck thinking about what’s coming next (work, relationships, concerts, vacations), and we don’t offer enough time for reflection. We like our lives to fit into nice neat boxes, and these years do not. How do we catalog years of not only a medical pandemic, but also political unrest, police brutality, mass shootings, attacks on LGBT members, regression of women’s rights, and more? It is easy to become numb to the things happening around us and define it as “the new normal.” As an adult, we bear this weight and continue on, expecting those around us - especially our students - to do the same. We must be more alert than ever to our personal wellbeing during this.
In order to reflect on my emotional journey these years, I have created a Spotify playlist that captures some of the key elements of this pandemic.
Everything Has Changed - We all heard the news about Covid in early 2020, around January, and many didn’t think it would make its way to the US or affect everyone how it did. The name of this song really sums up how we all feel thinking about March 2020. Most people can pinpoint one day where they truly felt that nothing would ever be the same again. However, we didn’t quite realize the gravity at that moment, hence the upbeat nature of this song.
It’s Nice To Have a Friend - The name of this song encompasses some of the bright spots of the pandemic. Things felt bleak and miserable at times, and all we could do was surround ourselves with friends and those that cared about us. There was a sense of community that arose during the pandemic. People were caring and helpful during times of total darkness.
epiphany - It was short into the pandemic that I began to feel hopeless. I wanted an answer, a way out, or a better understanding. The BLM protests of summer 2020 coupled with Covid, and it felt like people were dying alone and afraid. This song, specifically the second verse, captures the need for clarity that still has not come about these events.
Soon You’ll Get Better - We all hoped for the best. Loved ones were getting sick, and there was nothing to do but hope. The line, “You’ll get better soon cause you have to,” has always hit me deeply. We needed people to recover. We needed people to heal. And sometimes they did.
marjorie - Sometimes they got better, and sometimes they didn’t. Anyone who has ever lost a loved one can understand this song. My mother passed in October 2020 (not due to Covid), and it was one of the hardest things to experience. However, this song talks about, “What died didn’t stay dead,” and I think about all those that have passed in recent years for all sorts of reasons and the way we need to remember them. Legacies live on through us and through passionate activism to fix the problems in society.
this is me trying - These last two years have been exceptionally hard for a lot of people, and we are all trying our best. Sometimes it feels like there’s not a moment to catch our breath or have time to feel all the things we need to. No one should be expected to be okay right now, our students included, and we should reward them for trying and continuing on in the face of trauma.
Out Of The Woods - Every day we are thinking that maybe it’s over now. Maybe this pandemic has passed us, and maybe we can get back to “normal.” It feels like we have been “in the woods,” for so long, and there doesn’t feel like there’s an end in sight. When will we ever be truly out of the woods?
Only The Young - This song explicitly talks about the social issues we are facing. Not only have we been facing a global pandemic, but we have also had so many political issues in our country. However, as educators, we are offered the change to ensure that our students will be a part of fixing these issues. Young people are thirsty for change, and we can only hope that they will be able to fix some of the problems facing this world. As a young person myself, I hope to stand by them in their fight.
There are definitely more Taylor Swift songs that could fit into this playlist (Change, Never Grow Up, Untouchable, Ronan), as well as songs by other artists that would capture the emotional rollercoaster of these past years. It is hard to sum up everything that could be said, but I would challenge you to do the same. What part of the pandemic would you focus on? The disease itself? The time with family? The BLM movement? The social distancing? The virtual learning? Would yours be more upbeat? Depressing? Both? Take a half hour, sit down, reflect on your experiences, and create your own playlist.