Over Christmas I was asked by more people than I can count whether I'd be going back to Canada or not in the new year. Every time I answered that question the exact same way: “I really hope so.” I was going into my last semester, and while I knew it would be different, I didn’t want to miss out on whatever normal experiences were left. I wanted to attend my in-person seminar, spend time with my roommates, and come back, for one last term, to the campus and city I have grown to love so much.
As much as I wanted to go back, when the end of December rolled around, I was more nervous about travelling than ever before. I was no longer only concerned about remembering to pack everything I needed, or triple checking for my passport, all of a sudden there were so many more things to worry about: Waiting for the pre-flight covid test to come back was where the panic first set in, then it was making sure I had enough masks and sanitizer for the journey. Next, it was getting to the airport and trying to distance from people on the plane. The journey is always tiring, but with all the concerns introduced by Covid it became draining. Before the semester even started, I had to deal with the stress of travelling and quarantining, but I was still so happy and lucky to have been able to come back.
That being said, being back definitely looks different to what I had expected. My classes have been entirely on zoom as the stay at home order prevented my in-person-class from starting back up. While my classes were mostly online last semester too, I could still study at the library, which currently isn’t an option so everyday looks pretty much the same. It’s strange to be in London, a city I have come to associate with excitement and social life, during a time like this, because the energy of the city feels entirely shifted. At times, I have found these changes stressful and draining, but I have made the most of it and realized there are certain things this new environment has been really great for: It’s given me the chance to get closer to my roommates and challenged us to come up with our own creative ways to have fun, like paint nights, family dinners, and movie marathons. It has also taught me how to manage stress, especially when it comes to the unknown, and shown me how lucky I am to have such a strong support system, both here and back home. The pandemic has presented a lot of difficult changes that we have all experienced together and because of that it has given us a chance to grow from it together. Not only have I learnt how to ask for support, but also how to better support my friends and family when they’re needing it.
I am writing this now knowing that I will be heading back to Greece at the end of the month. I never wanted to have to cut my last year short, but as the situation gets worse back home, the question of whether I will be able to come back if I wait until later is constantly on my mind. I feel extremely privileged to have been able to travel to and from home this year, and I feel so lucky that I have been able to form deeper connections with the people I care about most. So while this year didn’t go to plan and definitely isn’t ending in the way I expected it to, I am so thankful for all my time here at Western, this year included, because it showed me how lucky I have been to be able to find a second home here. Leaving early is bittersweet, because I would never have felt this sad if I hadn’t loved my time here so much.
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