The Article below was published in Vol. 136, Issue 6 of the Lake Forest College Stentor on March 12, 2021.
By Sergio Bardesi-Texocotitla ’22
Staff Writer
I remember my last stress-free break from school. It was the summer after sixth grade, and all post-sixth-grade Sergio did to fill his time was bike to the library, play Pokémon: SoulSilver on my red Nintendo DS Lite, and consume concerning amounts of candy. One evening, in particular, stands out. I was exploring the new landscape of YouTube when my dad called me and my younger sister for dinner, filling half of our plates with carne asada, freshly plucked from his charcoal grill. My mom filled the other half with her beautifully seasoned arroz; on the table before us was freshly made salsa, tortillas, and an assortment of vegetables. Meanwhile, my small, blonde Chihuahua mutt begged us for bones.
If only I could go back and warn young Sergio that this would be his last moment of true exemption from the constant deadlines of work, of academia, of paying for a premium Hulu subscription. If only he could have known to really savor these moments, if only…
I crave this rest more than anything now, especially as I look at the rest of this semester’s schedule. This spring semester lacks an essential component: Spring Break. Depending on who you are, you would have liked to work as many hours as possible during the week of Spring Break to pad your wallet for some essentials or even some luxuries, or you may have used the break to travel across the country to visit friends or relatives, or to consume copious amounts of alcohol.
I would like none of the above—I hate working, I tire easily from travelling, and I love my liver. I was ready to use my Spring Break to unwind, stay at home, and drain my emotional swamp. In this swamp, I frequently hear lamentations, grievances, and utterances of rage. “This is the gajillionth customer today without a mask! The air-gulper behind is in my zone again… Why can’t we cancel that kid’s 14th birthday party?”
A day of silence is all that I ask for, so I can relax in the tub without having to think about an essay due tomorrow, turn off my news app that constantly tells me about the latest COVID-related developments, and the increasingly pessimistic worries that a variant of the virus will become different enough to render the vaccine ineffective.
But, no! Some students would use the time to travel and potentially spread the deadly virus, so all Foresters must commit to this arduous schedule. We must maintain our unrelentingly studious habits in order to work through these entire 14 weeks without a good break. However, there are notable benefits! No sports teams will have the chance to spread germs right after the break and put a dozen into lockdown! And, these consecutive 14 weeks without a break will allow many of us to experience the authentic version of adult life in America—never taking breaks and working ourselves to the bone to please our capitalist overlords. We will be ready for our futures!
If only I could go back a year and warn 19-year-old Sergio how impactful the coronavirus would be on our lives. Undoubtedly, March 2020 Sergio would give some level of optimistic credence to his Dumpster-fire government, to his conspiratorial countrymen, and to his fellow students.
“Surely,” Sergio-from-the-future, “every American citizen will stay home, wear a mask, and avoid large gatherings…Trump wouldn’t forsake us for the economy, right?” Well, in response, I would say, “you utterly naïve fool. Truly, that is an idealistic vision that I would love to crush.”
If only I could go back even further and warn post-sixth-grade Sergio, maybe then I could have entirely avoided these issues by running away—surely, a nice pack of wolves would have adopted me!
Sigh. If only, no?
