The Importance of Human Interaction

Fiona Sundy ’23
Student

Staring out the window of my room. Not on campus; at home. Listening to “Don’t Wanna Be Here.” Not many people outside. There are some. They are wearing masks. I have to too. Every time I go outside. Missing my friends. Really badly. Haven’t talked to them much. Haven’t had the chance to. The quarter system is busy. Takes a while to organize a Zoom Jackbox game night. Talking to Harry Potter Club board more than other SCU friends. The weekly board meetings are the highlight of my pandemic experience. Socialization!  I didn’t love it before (I’m an introvert), but now, it’s the thing I miss most. Funny how a year of being stuck in a pandemic forces you to realize things like that. Going to another house just to get out of my own. Getting better at taking Zoom classes, and mental health improving for a bit. Never mind.  Extreme boredom. Motivation levels plummeting. Wanting the school year to be over. Finally, the vaccine! Which brand: Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson? Swing your arm around for hours so it won’t be sore tomorrow. The one direction you don’t move it in will hurt a lot.  If you don’t move it enough, it’ll feel dead, limp, and heavy for the next day. But it’s completely worth it. It’s the light at the end of the tunnel, and things are finally starting to open up again. We don’t have to wear masks outside. We can gather in bigger groups. We can eat indoors at restaurants. We can hug our grandmothers. We can go to an in-person class on campus. Most of all, we can see, touch, and hear people in person. We won’t take human interaction for granted ever again.