Pandemic affects families

Emily Fendall-York 
Staff Writer

As we all know, during the pandemic lots of families had to quarantine and stay at home as much as they could. There were both negative and positive outcomes that came from quarantine such as getting to spend time and bond with your family, but not being able to see friends. All families had different experiences of how they all coped through that tough time. 

Since families that were stuck at home bored together, there was more time for family activities that they could do. Whether it was binge watching TV, or playing games, anything that made time in the house less boring.

 “During quarantine my family has grown a lot closer. Me and my dad found many activities to do since we were stuck at home. We played video games together, played board games. I helped my dad move into his new house, and invested in working on a  mini bike,” senior Gabe Gaspard said.

Bonding as a family, especially with students in high school, is something that not everyone gets to be involved in. This time in students’ lives is where they want to start to break free from the nest and become their own person. Quarantine gave families a chance to bond that not every family would have had before the outbreak. It was very resourceful to have families together at such a tough time because quarantine is a foreign thing for a lot of students and families had more time to heal and talk to each other about it and better understand the situation.

Seniors this year get the opportunity to spend this year and a half at home with their families, this could benefit the seniors to be better prepared and ready to move out by the end of the year. There won’t be the regret that they did not spend enough time together.

“My family began quarantining themselves soon after the pandemic hit. I couldn’t see my grandparents for the longest time and my mom couldn’t even see her boyfriend. We waited a long time to see friends and family but now we wear masks and say ‘hi’ once in awhile,” sophomore Audrey Gale said. “Me, my brother, and my mom began bickering over little things and getting irritated with each other’s company. It was hard for a while but in the end we are closer and spend more quality time with each other.” 

Although, in some cases bonding did not happen during quarantine. Depending on the family’s situation bonding could have not come easy to them. Since students are not tied to the school schedule it gives them more freedom and time to do other things they enjoy.

“My family has actually grown apart during the pandemic. Since my parents don’t have to pick me up from school, they’re able to go out more,” senior Dustin Redmond said.

The effects the pandemic had on families also greatly differs because there were various problems that those families experienced, and some did not have a problem. Some families could have experienced that they got the opportunity to bond together and be there for each other. Some families got annoyed of being cooped up together all of the time. And, some families have lost connection completely with the rest of their family because of the risk of spreading the disease.