A few years ago, in the roaring year of 2017, I cried tears of joy and fear in lieu of my graduation from High School. I remember my Grad day as though a mere 24 hours have passed since I threw my cap up in the air, hugged my friends and teachers goodbye, and watched as the cap swept down, making an end to my leisure days of childhood. Walking down the halls in one final swoop of goodbye, my memories danced through my mind. The walls came alive in whispered reminisce- of the countless adventures they bore witness to, and the myriad of laughter and tears absorbed. This bittersweet moment captured forever in the thousand and some pictures taken. I walked away in blissful sorrow, sad to bid adieu to the days that made me optimistic for tomorrow.
Fast Forward to the year 2021, the year of the countdown to my graduation from the institution I’ve been lucky enough to call home for the past few years – Queen’s University. As the days tick closer to graduation and the days of being a student grow fewer and fewer, I am left in the same daze I was in back in 2017. My days at Queen’s are coming to an end and I can honestly say these are the saddest days of my life so far. I find myself zoning out in the midst of writing an assignment or reading a school-related email thinking to myself “Oh My God. This could be the last”. Thenceforth my mind runs in poetic prose of the memories of yore, and I’m left pondering what this year could’ve been had this pandemic not taken reign of our lives.
I would’ve truly loved to soak up every last second of life on campus- dining in Lenny, late nights at Lazy, avoiding responsibility in between classes whilst lounging on a bench listening to music and watching some silly game (whether it be soccer or football or frisbee); whatever it may be, it would’ve been a great sight. I miss walking on campus amidst busy bodies as they rushed to class, or catching a meal in between lectures. Getting mediocre coffee to pull all-nighters at Stauffer and the many more mundane activities carried out on the daily by the Queens body. I had plans of final goodbyes and written memoirs, documented pictures and the like to capture my final year at Queens before the bell tolled goodbye. Now I have to face the sonder music that is the real world. And so, I write this in sadness and hope this year gets better so that I can mark my final days with a smile.
