This pandemic has reminded me that I wake up every day with a decision of what to put out into the world. Sacrifice has become commonplace among all of us, but so has selflessness. I have seen more acts of genuine altruism in the past year than I’ve probably seen in my entire life. And on the other hand, I’ve seen more tragedy in the past year than I can add up over my lifetime. Everyone is hurting in some way. So when I am faced with this choice of what I can put out into the world, I need to choose kindness every single day. All of us do.

The pandemic has taught me the importance of staying true to yourself. No matter how hard you try to plan your future, something unexpected may change the course of events. Staying true to yourself and keeping your core values at the forefront of your mind will help you persevere through the greatest challenges, proving to yourself all that you are capable of.

The most profound experiences I had showed the unity and resilience within my social circles - we are stronger together. COVID-19 has been a call to action to critically reflect on social determinants of health and improve how we think about populations and systems of care. This pandemic lays the groundwork for health professionals to think about health outside a strictly medical standpoint.

I have recognized that cleanliness can be taken for granted. Yet, in my opinion, the collective effort to minimize the spread of the virus, has heightened the proactivity and awareness to both personal and public hygiene, increasing hypervigilance toward cleanliness. I believe this focus on improving hygiene to be critical to maintaining beyond the pandemic.

Resilience has been one of my biggest takeaways from the pandemic. Whether you are a frontline healthcare worker or a student transitioning to online classes, everyone had to persevere through the pressure. This experience taught me to always be adaptable and ready to rise to any challenge.

COVID-19 highlighted the best tool we have is empathy. What we owe to each other, even during the toughest moments is understanding that people deserve care across every challenge. It exposed that the mentors, professors, and peers I admire most were those most willing to extend empathy to our community. And that is something to cherish regardless of circumstances.

Some lessons I have learned from attending my last college year at AU online are starting to put my health first and setting boundaries between work and school since things are online now and can become a little overwhelming. So adjusting for the upcoming semester and doing more self-care, working but not as much as I would in-person, and talking to my professors and staff that I trust about issues and approaching them in the best way. Lastly, not stressing myself out too much about post-graduation and what will happen next and understanding that the Class of 2020/2021 are graduating during an insane time in this country. These things are out of my control, but I can control my personal life to improve my health and overall well-being.