Items

• 2021

  At Home

  The pandemic had caused us all to stay home, families were all living all day everyday together. For me this meant that I was spending more time with them, more than usual. Before the pandemic had started, my family ran on the same routine everyday, me and my siblings would go off to school, my mom is a stay at home mom so she would spend her time taking care of the house, and my dad would go off to work, he has his own construction business. The only time we were really home together as a family would be the hours my dad would be off of work from after around 7pm. When I was younger he would work many more hours, sometimes as long as 5am-8pm but the point is, he was barely ever home but to spend an hour or two with us and then he would sleep. I did have a good relationship with my dad and so many memories as well but the quality time wasn't really there. It is not like he didn't want to be around but it was that he wanted to work more while he was younger so that he could invest into his retirement and save up more while he can. Once the pandemic started, he was home with us much more. Of course this came with both pros and cons, such as having that quality time with him, but it also meant that there were much more disagreements since we were all together all day everyday. One of my favorite memories from those days were when we had ordered a whole lot of board games and jenga blocks to keep my younger brother entertained (and off of electronics as much as possible). My dad loves to bring in his construction wherever and whenever he can. He would take my brother's jenga blocks and make buildings with it and show off how he so thoughtfully made it so that it can actually hold weight and its not just good looking. The pandemic changed my dad's relevancy. Once lockdown was over, and he was back at work, he started working less hours making sure he would be home by 5pm or 6pm at most and he would spend his evenings with us again. The pandemic changed my life in many ways but my dad is always the first person I think of when I remember those days. He truly does try to stay as relevant in our lives as he can even when he is tired and it's great seeing the effort he puts in.
• 2021-09-24

  How COVID-19 affected me and my family

  September 24th 2021. It was just another normal day in the new pandemic experience, most of my day was spent on Zoom doing online classes for about four hours of the day. Today was different because I had an orthodontist appointment to finally have my braces removed after about 2.5 years of them on. As almost everyone else, I was finally excited to have my braces taken off and actually see my new smile. So after my 2 classes my mom drove me to the orthodontist and left me in the office to go run other errands. After leaving to do so, I had gotten my braces remove in what was really fast time compared to what I had envisioned. So when I had finished up and scheduled a future appointment for my retainer fitting I called my mom to see when she was going to pick me up and no response. I left a message and then called my dad. Again no response. I texted him and he said, “(Name) come home by bus. Mom had to go” I didn’t think much of it so I took the bus home. After I got home I called out in the house and had no response so I walked in normally, taking off my shoes and sweater. I walked into my parents bedroom and seen my parents on the bed. My mom almost curled up teary eyed and tissues next to her. My dad sitting on the edge of the bed next to her holding the tissue box. Obviously with the circumstances of that time, my heart sunk thinking someone died. COVID-19 is known to be fairly hard on the geriatric population so when my grandma from my mothers side had gotten it the night before, we were all on edge. My mom didn’t say a word, so my dad took me outside the room and said something. I still to this day can’t recall what he was saying and I just walked away. To this day I’ve been afraid to ask of the specifics, all I know was that she was alone in the hospital because of the country she was in had strict hospital visitation policies. I still don’t know how to deal with these emotions because honestly she was the person I loved the most second to my mother. She helped raise me and made me into the man I am today. Thank You وداد
• 
  2020-10-06

  The Album

  On every family vacation we'd ever taken, I was the designated photographer. It was my job to catch the monuments, and the murals and pictures of my brothers dancing at amusement parks. I was reluctant at first but I improved and every year when we got home, I couldn't be prouder of my little collection. It became a tradition, maybe a week or so after, to look through the album and remember the adventures we had. During those moments, life was beautiful and we were on top of the world. A few years ago as we flipped through a set of photos, my father looked at me and said that we needed to take more videos. I laughed at him but he explained that photos were never enough-you wanted to feel and see and be a part of that memory, and videos were the closest thing to it: a captured moment in time. Of course, I agreed. Even when we weren't on vacations, I was taking photos of us at weekend excursions, at the grocery store, washing our little red car...I could go on for hours and hours but today, I won't. When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, I was excited to document this new chapter in our lives which included many DIY home improvements, my failed attempt at a flower garden and sleepovers with my brothers. It was definitely an adjustment. Later on in the year, about late September, my father got sick. He was our designated shopper, our designated driver, our designated everything really so it wasn't surprising but I continued to take photos. I thought to myself, when he gets better, we'll be able to look back on this album on laugh. He spent that first week in quarantine with piles of pills and jugs of orange juice. I spent that first week peeking through the door separating us and taking photos through the window. He would always see me and wave; so much for my candid photos. His birthday rolled around almost a week later and although he was sick, he managed a bite of the worst birthday cake I've ever made but of course, he smiled. I heeded his earlier advice and took photos of his birthday card, his (failed) birthday cake, and a video of us singing to him through the door. He was getting better and life was good. About a week later, my album was filling up and I was sure it would be ending soon because we'd seen some improvements. Unfortunately, he plateaued with his recovery. In the blink of an eye, the subject of my album had gotten weak and frail, and before I could hold on to him, he slipped away. Needless to say, I was devastated-we all were and time seemed to halt. For months, I couldn't look at that album because it was a constant reminder that it didn't have the happy ending that I wanted. But now, my thoughts have changed. I miss my father every day but his passing has reminded me to hold on tight to the things that he taught me. I always remember that he'd say that he was living life and seeing good days and looking back, I'm so grateful that we have those albums as a permanent reminder of all the fun we've had, the mischief we'd gotten into and the life we'd been blessed to enjoy together. I don't want to focus on the things I've lost but instead on what I've gained and that's a greater appreciation for all the people who love and support me. Don't forget to take those photos, make sure you have the sound up when you're recording your videos, but never forget to just live in the moment. That's what this pandemic has taught me.
• 
  2021-09-27

  Unexpected

  It's a descriptive story of how covid has affected my life and its important to me because it has a long term affect.
• 
  2021-02-14

  Essential vs. Expendable Workers

  When the pandemic broke out, I was caught in the whirlwind of being an essential worker. I was a manager at my local McDonalds, so I've seen just how cruel people can be, and how corporations have continued to neglected their workers. Many people are minimum wage workers, and its frightening to know that such a large population is suffering so much, only to receive little appreciation and change. Through my personal story, I hope to have readers step in the shoes of a minimum wage worker than a pandemic, so when they step out, they'll raise awareness on the issue of lack of support and care for minimum wage workers.