While the world is in distress and the 2020 school year comes to an unceremonious close, it may seem as if everyone is in idle anticipation for life to return to normal. However, some students are taking advantage of extra time they may have to increase their creativity and enrich their lives, despite the circumstances.

Senior Zoya Deen has been cultivating a small indoor garden consisting of numerous plants including strawberries, clovers, forget-me-nots and more.

“[The plants] are growing big and tall,” Deen said. “I used an egg carton to hold the strawberries and clovers, it’s biodegradable and when the plants are ready to be moved into the ground, it’ll loosen up and stay out of the landfills.”

Deen’s mini garden is a reminder of her life pre-isolation and she said it continues to provide joy as it grows and develops.

“Some friends and I went to Target just before quarantine got bad and found some grow kits to start, and from there I used seeds and soil I had at home,” Deen said. “It’s nice to take care of something and it makes my room feel a bit happier.”

Additionally, junior Megan Moore took up an art project of her own during quarantine,  involving a high quantity of soda can tabs.

“Quarantine was fun at first, but now I’m just home alone all day and very bored…I miss social interaction,” Moore said. “My friend always collects [soda] tabs and has since I’ve known her, so I thought it might be fun to make her something with a ton of [soda] tabs as a gift.”

While Moore’s soda can tab painting was intended for another person, it also provided her a way to keep busy constructively and keep her engaged in something creative.

“I measured out the canvas and figured it would take 300 tabs to cover it,” Moore said. “It took about two months to collect all the [soda] tabs and about a week to make the painting background and glue all the tabs on.”

One creative endeavor relating more to home-improvement occurred at senior Cally and sophomore Lexi Hall’s house when they came together as a family to paint their front door.

“I like the new door color, I think it looks really good and helps brighten up the outside of our house,” Cally said. “I also learned a lot by doing it because we power washed the porch and used an electric sander on the door before we did it which are both things I have never done before.

In regards to making time for hobbies and family, Cally has tried to benefit from time now spent away from extracurriculars and the strict schedule of school.

“[Painting the door] was my mom’s idea, she just wanted a change and thought now was a good time to do it,” Cally said. “As far as creativity goes, I feel like it has helped me enjoy my time in quarantine because I get to spend time doing things I like to do like drawing and painting that I usually don’t have much time for with school.” 

In spite of any negative emotions that inevitably arise at the prospect of social isolation, Cally is making active efforts to stay positive and make the most out of life while remaining considerate to public safety precautions.

“I don’t like quarantine because I want things to be normal but I think it has helped me have time to rest and take time for myself which I can’t do normally,” Cally said. “There’s nothing I can do about the situation so I’m just trying my best to enjoy it.”