Humans of La Sierra: Glaucia Monteiro

  #LaSierraTogether   Humans of La Sierra  

I was studying abroad in France, when I first heard of COVID19, we were trying not to panic  while we tried to continue to live each day like we normally would. But the whole thing would soon change for the worse. I was doing my homework on a Wednesday afternoon, when all ACA students were called to an emergency meeting. I arrived in the room confused, looking at my friends, trying to figure out what was happening, and dreading to hear what I was fearing.   

The director of IFLE told us that we had 48 hours to pack all of our belongings and leave the country. This was the ACA plea for all students abroad and that the French government had closed all schools as of 40 minutes prior to that meeting. My first response upon hearing this was to hysterically laugh, which then turned into tears because I had so many travel plans, and I was really looking forward to the best part of studying abroad in France, which was the trip to the South of France. It all happened so fast that I didn't have a chance to really think about it. All I knew was that when I landed in Boston all the tears that I seemed to have suppressed bursted out because, at that moment, I realized that this wasn't a nightmare, it was my new reality.

 Above all, I cried because so many people were suffering, and so many people were dying in such a short amount of time. I was trying not to cry because I still had to pass through security and didn't want them to think I was infected.

I made a schedule for my daily routine. I don't know if this was a good or a bad thing because I am anything but bored during this quarantine.

My mom is an essential worker, so she is barely home. I am terrified every time she leaves the house because my grandmother is 91 years old, and I don't know how I would survive if anything were to happen to her. My heart aches just thinking about it. But here is what I do everyday, I wake up at 8AM, do my devotion, take care of my grandmother, exercise, cook, then tune in on Zoom. Then I follow that by procrastinating to do my homework. I do so much before class because I live in Massachusetts, which means I am 3 hours ahead of Pacific time. 

For this quarter I hope to be able to connect with others, even if that means through our virtual new reality. I hope we can all come out stronger, and loving and supportive of one another. I pray for those who are suffering in any shape or form due to this pandemic, and I wish to let them know that they are not alone and that they are loved even by a stranger like me across the states. 

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