“I think we should keep learning more about the past, what’s happening now, and our future.”

Laurel is one of the 150,000 students in Ontario starting high school in September.
Published on July 30th, 2020.

I’m not always the best at thinking positively.

This year has just been a completely unique experience for me. I’m in 8th grade going into 9th grade and my mental health hasn’t been the best throughout this year.

Back in the fall and winter with the teacher strikes, we had multiple days off and it was hard to get back into things when we did go back to school. And then, we had the pandemic. It kind of feels like a big mountain with everything all on top of each other.

With school online, I’ve been at home trying new things. I’m learning to play the ukulele, I’m painting more, and I’ve also been trying to educate myself about the Black Lives Matter movement.

On Instagram and TikTok, I was seeing things I had never thought of before. I’ve realized how little we actually learn about racism in school.

I think it’s important for myself and everyone to be more educated because discrimination is still happening. I’ve seen lots of people speak up passionately this year and spread information to educate others.

Usually people are talking about sports but now other extremely important matters are being brought to light. I don’t think this should stop.

I think we should keep learning more about the past, what’s happening now, and our future.

2020: In your Words is a mini-series that shares genuine and candid conversations about 2020 has impacted our community members. From the pandemic, to social isolation, to the Black Lives Matter protests, 2020 has challenged us to grow in so many different ways.

Storytelling by Meris Kieller and The Community Company.

Click here to return to the project page, or keep scrolling for the arrows to jump to the next story.