Chaos of COVID-19 & Company Crisis Control: From a College Student's Perspective

The Coronavirus outbreak came to fruition silently but deadly. As for me, a sophomore in college, I did not think much of COVID-19 when I first heard about its outbreak in China. To me, China seemed so far away and foreign that I never thought Corona would reach the United States in the way that it has, and to the extreme that is has.

I left my college town the Tuesday before Spring Break to go on my family's vacation to ski in the mountains of Lake Tahoe, California. At the time I was packing up and heading home from my sorority house in Norman, OK, I had simply packed the items needed 1. for my ski trip and 2. to switch out my winter and summer clothes in my closet. Never did it cross my mind that at this time, I should have been clearing out my room to go home for the remainder of the semester.

As my family and I arrived at the airport in Dallas, it was still quite busy, and it was a rare and odd occasion to see someone wearing a face mask. In fact, on the plane, my sister and I thought that it was funny that an older couple, sitting a few rows in front of us, were taking selfies in their matching face masks. Yes, my family and I wiped down our seats, seatbelts, and trays with Clorox wipes, but that was the extent of our germ-related worries.

When we arrived at Lake Tahoe on March 11th, we merrily made our way to a Five Guys restaurant, sat inside, and enjoyed our burgers and milkshakes. No restaurants were closed. No grocery stores were closed. The shortage of toilet paper and paper towels was barely noticeable. Over the next few days we skied, shopped in the boutiques and stores, and ate out in restaurants around town without a care in the world. During these days we found out that the NFL and NBA, among many other professional sports associations, were shutting down games and tournaments for the rest of their seasons. We also found out that President Trump was now taking this whole pandemic more seriously and with more concern. And lastly, that the ski slopes were being shut down due to the Coronavirus. That one hurt.

With the mentioning of "shelter in place" policies and possibilities of closing state borders, my parents became uneasy with being on vacation far away from our home state. In addition to all of these uprising matters, Lake Tahoe was hit with a snowstorm, which made us concerned that we would be snowed in. Thankfully, we still had the opportunity to ski and go snowmobiling before we became stuck in our cabin in Lake Tahoe.

On March 16th we were relieved to be heading home to the safety of our homes in Dallas, Texas. When we arrived to DFW Airport, it was almost empty; people had realized the dangers of traveling in such chaotic times. Soon after returning home, The University of Oklahoma announced its decision to transition to online curriculum for the remainder of the semester and eventually the closure of campus until July 31st.

Although quarantining at home has been very boring and attending school via Zoom has been a drag, this has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience of record-time spent with my family. And I am thankful for that opportunity. My entire experience with the Coronavirus outbreak has taught me to never take things for granted ever again: friends, being able to eat inside of restaurants, being able to physically go to class, working out in a gym, getting a haircut, going to the mall, etc. Every person's story is different in how they have faced COVID-19, but we should all come out of this pandemic with more gratitude and joy for the little things in life.

Click on picture for link to image.

#GaylordPR #MorganMcGlassonPR #PublicRelations #CofCandCCC #COVID19 #Coronavirus #Zoom #UniversityofOklahoma #Quarantine