written by: aidan callahan

Let me start off with a warning: I’m not usually one to write opinion pieces. I’m not usually one to write anything serious at all. The only opinion piece I’ve ever written was one that made fun of other opinion pieces. So don’t expect some life-changing revelation at the end of this. 

I know that’s usually what you want from an opinion piece, but hasn’t the whole theme of this year been not getting what you want? Even though the writing was on the wall by February that we’d be sent back, everyone was still shocked when it happened. I think that’s because deep down no one wanted it to happen.

I love sitting inside watching TV all day, but that wasn’t enough to compensate for only being able to hang out with my family.

Maybe that’s a little harsh on my family. I actually ended up having a lot of fun with them. Quarantine is a fantastic time to discover just how much your parents drink. 

I mean, I suppose there’s no better time to down five glasses of wine than on a Monday board game night with your children when you don’t have to go into work the next morning, but that’s not a lesson I thought I’d learn from my mom. 

I actually learned a lot of lessons this quarantine from unexpected sources. Particularly Jewish children. 

This summer, I wanted to work at a job that would be relevant to me and my future career. I ended up only finding work at a Jewish summer camp, despite the fact I am not Jewish nor do I have any intentions to work in childcare. 

But you know who else had absolutely no interest in being there? The kids. They were miserable. They had no interest in sitting in the hot sun learning about Israel all day, and I couldn’t blame them. But I could blame them for one thing: they weren’t even trying. This one boy would beg me to play sports, and then one day I said to him, “Guess what? We’re playing tennis today!” and his response was, “Tennis isn’t a real sport.” 

That’s when it all became clear: these kids are having a terrible time because they’re refusing to adapt. My mom didn’t want quarantine, but she made the most of it and had a great time. I didn’t want to work at a Jewish summer camp, but I turned it around and learned not just a lot about the state of Israel, but also a lot about life as a whole. 

So how’s this for a twist ending: There is a life-changing revelation at the end of this opinion piece! 

But it’s as simple as can be: just have fun with whatever you’re doing. I’m a goofy guy and I was told to write a serious opinion piece. So what did I do? I had fun with it! I brought my back page energy to the Opinions page. 

Here’s the obvious way it applies to you, dear reader: This isn’t the semester any of us wanted, especially if you’re a first-year. But if you just sit around dwelling on how it could have been better, you’ll never enjoy it for what it is. So take this weird semester and have as much fun with it as you can. 

To quote Sherly Crow, “It’s not having what you want, it’s wanting what you’ve got.”