Chaotic year ends


Graphic by Ivory Rightnar


2020, possibly the worst year our generation has experienced. From the wildfires in Australia to COVID-19, the world has gone through H-E-double hockey sticks. The world thought 2020 would be THE year, thought it was a chance to start fresh, but man, was the world wrong. 

It all started in January, chaos around the world spread fast. The bushfires in Australia caused approximately 445 deaths, destroyed thousands of buildings and burned 46,050,750 acres of land. Then, to kick the chaos off even more, the killing of an Iranian military general had everyone thinking World War three was about to start. The unthinkable happened Jan. 26, basketball fans mourned the loss of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gigi Bryant after a terrible helicopter accident. Finally, January was over, but little did the world know it was only going to get worse. 

Before 2020, I remember seeing that COVID-19 was taking over China; it never came to my mind that the virus would reach me. It all came to reality March 11 when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 an official pandemic. To be honest, I was not all that worried about the virus until the day Governor Laura Kelly ordered schools to close for the rest of the academic year. I was driving home with my sister when I heard the news; at first I was excited, but, when I got home, I started crying with my mother. Everything came crashing down, I realized this meant no softball season, no prom and no graduation for my friends in the class ahead of me. I did not know what to think, and I am sure the rest of the world felt scared as well. 

Quarantine was terribly boring, I picked up painting, forced myself to workout and always asked my mom if we had any toilet paper. From browsing social media, I realized the rest of the world was going through what I was. Once school started, the world began to normalize, but I knew senior year would not be everything I imagined. 

The beginning of senior year was chaotic and challenging; being quarantined three times and having six months off of school made life very stressful. I thought the worst of senior year was going to be having to wear a mask, but I was very wrong. Going to football and boys basketball games were always my favorite part of school, but the fan restrictions for the games made the energy low. Also, I feel as if my peers and I have been more divided than ever. 

After the Black Lives Matter protest, Trump being impeached, the Capitol raid and with the election, students were getting into heated arguments over these issues. The arguments led to high tension throughout the school.

Perhaps the best event to take place in 2020 was the Kansas City Chiefs winning the Super Bowl.  I believe that everyone has learned important lessons and skills because of COVID-19, and in a way, the virus could be a blessing in disguise. 2020, a year to go down in history.