‘Stay strong and know this will all be over soon,’ writes Michaela Grace-Ginty

It's fair to say that this week has been pretty hectic. I realised summer exams were in two weeks' time. Yes, I still have summer exams. I've been working on end-of-year projects and catching up on notes.

I guess what I have realised is that I have been working at a quarter speed than the rate my schoolwork was being dished out to me. But I am looking forward to May 18, whatever it will bring. May 5 did not really do anything on the day itself, but it did set a precedent. That we are coming out on the other side of this, albeit slowly.

So, the Leaving Cert is cancelled. It's done. It's finished. It's still taking me a while to get over it.

The secondary school experience is over for so many students. I think it was the best, if not the only option. It's just a bit anticlimactic. One minute you are studying for some exams that had been rescheduled for two months time.

Some of the most important exams of your life. The next minute you get a notification on your phone from the news that you're done. It is over.

I know there’s a lot of questions still to be answered, but they’ll find a solution eventually.

I heard a different story on the radio when I was sweeping the floor in the kitchen the other day. It was about the new maternity hospital. I cannot tell you how refreshing it was to hear something different on the news. Twenty seconds later when it reverted back to more Covid-19 news, I just internally sighed. It was not even any updated news, just more statistics on economics.

But to be honest, school has been a welcome distraction. It is making me feel productive again.
The house feels like it is getting smaller every day, with the washing machine, dishwasher, radio, TV, and phone calls going on non-stop.

It is hard to focus on anything non coronavirus related. It is not as if I could just jump ship to the garden with all my study with my oh-so-reliable laptop that shuts down the moment you unplug the charger and randomly freezes every 25 minutes.

But back to the more important things. This week is the 75-year anniversary of VE day. A day of celebration, remembrance and for many the end of a long road to peace. So, with that attitude we have to keep going, stay strong and know this will all be over soon.

And with the words of poet Patricia Denise Newman about that day in our world’s history; Thank God it's finally ended; finished; over; done!

Hopefully, we may say the same about Covid-19 too sometime soon.